The Malaysian international feels that if JDT are to progress to the Malaysia Cup final, they will have to play better than they did in the first leg.
Syafiq Ahmad isn’t entirely satisfied with the 2-1 win achieved over Selangor in the first leg of the 2019 Malaysia Cup semi-final and he knows that the return fixture this Saturday will be an even greater challenge for his team. The first leg home win proved to be a difficult one especially as Selangor managed to equalise shortly after Syafiq had put Johor Darul Ta’zim ahead in the 14th minute.
The in-form forward knows that B. Sathianathan will ensure that his Selangor side pose their strongest ever challenge because they are playing at home. Which is exactly why Syafiq feels that the second leg at Shah Alam Stadium will be one of the most difficult matches that JDT have to play this season.
“The win the other day wasn’t easy because we are now at the semi-final stage and all the teams who are here are equally strong and hard to beat. Selangor showed that by putting pressure on us and closing us down in every area of the pitch that made it difficult for my team to be consistent on the pitch.
“So that’s why our performance wasn’t our normal standard but I’m thankful to my team mates that we didn’t give up and got the win at the end,” said Syafiq.
Syafiq started the first leg in place of the injured Brazilian Diogo Luis Santo and put in another enterprising display playing as the main striker. Having scored in the match, Syafiq was able to replicate his international scoring form for his club side much to the delight of the home fans at Larkin witnessing JDT’s last game at their beloved stadium.
Diogo is once under put under close watch at JDT in a bid to recover in time for the second leg but it looks increasingly likely that Syafiq will be able to continue in that striker role for at least another week. With Selangor holding a precious away goal, JDT will also seek to find the same at Shah Alam and in Syafiq, they have a player who knows the way to the back of the net.
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