Bengaluru FC vs Johor Drul Ta'zim FC
mohammed_87hassan
Sumeet Passin FC Jupiter10492 Points
BENGALURU FC vs JOHOR DARUL TA'ZIM FC(AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE PLAY OFFS -preliminary round 1)
Venue-Larkin Stadium,Johor BahruTime -6:15 IST
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Preview: Blues set for continental debut
The defending champions of India's two biggest domestic
competitions will start as underdogs against a star-
studded Malaysian side...
By Atanu Mitra
04-Feb-2015 02:25:00
Malaysia Super League (MSL)
champions Johor Darul Ta'zim
FC will host I-League
champions Bengaluru FC in an
AFC Champions League play-
off match at the Tan Sri
Hassan Yunos Stadium in
Larkin on Wednesday evening.
The hosts are coming on the back of a resounding 2-0
victory against Pahang FC in the Malaysian Charity Shield
match last Saturday and will be eager to clear the first of
their three-step challenge to make it to the AFC
Champions League group stages.
The team, however, will be missing two key players in
Lucho Figueora and Mohammed Aidil due to injuries. While
Lucho was a member of Argentina's Olympic Gold Medal
winning squad in 2004, Aidil is amongst the most
influential figures on the pitch being the captain of the
Malaysian club.
“We are ready for the qualifiers although we will have to
rest two of our key players. Striker Luciano (Figueroa) has
a muscle injury while centre-back Mohammed Aidil
(Zafuan) is not fully fit,” said coach Bojan Hodak on
Tuesday.
Mohammed Amri Yahyah, who was rested in the last
match could make it into the starting eleven and will be
paired alongside Argentine striker Jorge Pereyra Diaz in
attack.
Safiq Salim is the key orchestrator of proceedings as he is
known for his set-piece deliveries and inch perfect
crosses.
“Of course, we are playing at home and I have always said
that if you are playing at home, no matter who you are up
against, you are always favourites. But it's going to be a
tough match. Bengaluru are a good, organised and
physical team. We have seen a few of their videos. The
good thing is that we beat Pahang FC and the spirit in the
camp is good,” remarked Hodak in the pre-match press
conference.
Talking about the Indian side, Bengaluru FC had their pre-
season training in China and played a number of practice
matches there. Only a month ago, they emerged victorious
in the country's premier cup competition, the Federation
Cup.
The defending champions however, suffered a sloppy start
to their I-League sojourn, garnering only a single point
from their first three matches. They had a brilliant
comeback last weekend though, when they thrashed the
unbeaten Royal Wahingdoh 4-0 in an away match to
record their first win of the competition.
This will be the first time they would be playing in the
prestigious continental tournament and they have the
chance to become the first Indian side to seal a berth in
the AFC Champions League group stage if they can
manage to win three consecutive play-off matches.
"On the day anything can happen. We'll go into the game
and apply ourselves correctly which is our framework and
see where it takes us. You can't be overconfident in
football. We are hopeful. We are looking forward to our
experience in Asian Football,"Ashley Westwood, the coach
of the side told in the pre-match press conference.
"The morale in the camp is good. We've come here on the
back of a four-nil victory which stands us in good stead.
But this is football and change is regular. We don't look at
anything into the past and we're looking forward to a
good match. Hopefully we can do ourselves some justice
and look what we can bring to the table. They are a good
side with some quality players. It will be a difficult as they
are the champion side," he further added.
The side will be depending heavily on Joshua Walker to
create openings while Sean Rooney and captain Sunil
Chhetri will be expected to be clinical in front of goal.
It remains to be seen how Bengaluru FC perform on the
Asian stage. The winner of this tie will meet Thailand's
Bangkok Glass in the second round of play-off.