A dejected Selangor FC head coach Kim Pan-gon has vowed to take the fight to Buriram United FC next week after suffering a 1-0 home defeat at the ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™ final, first leg on Wednesday night.
The Malaysian team’s first loss in eight matches of this season’s tournament was a blow in their hopes of ending an 11-year trophy drought following Suphanat Mueata’s header in the first half for the defending champions at MBPJ Stadium.
Kim’s men missed several golden opportunities to equalise and must now prepare for the difficult trip to Buriram for the return leg next Wednesday.
“Yes, we are very disappointed because we could not fully use our home advantage,” said Kim.
“In the first half, we struggled a little bit and made too many mistakes ourselves. But in the second half, we were very good. I think we controlled the game and created many goal-scoring chances. It was very positive.
“Still, we have another 90 minutes away from home. It will be very tough, but as Selangor, we must come back strongly, stand firm and make all Selangor fans and the Malaysian people proud. We will try our best to recover well and prepare well for the next match.”
Team captain Faisal Halim echoed Kim’s sentiments, saying the fight for the Shopee Cup™ was far from over despite the defeat. He knows his side must be on their toes to reduce errors after seeing an unmarked Suphanat nod home a cross from Theeraton Bunmathan.
“Even though we lost, we still have 90 minutes. Games like this, we have to reduce our mistakes. If we have silly mistakes, we will have to pay the price. The goal wasn’t through a dangerous situation, it was a simple goal. We won’t give up,” said Faisal.
“It was disappointing as we were playing at home. We had some good chances. We controlled the game, we attacked and we created chances, but we failed to put the ball in the net which was the most important thing tonight.”
Shopee Star of the Match Hugo Boumous said Selangor will head to Thailand with the belief they can overcome the one-goal deficit.
“We have to be brave,” stressed the French midfielder. “To be brave in football is one of the most important things.
“We can be proud of what we did today. We fought together with a great spirit and now we have to bounce back because there is another 90 minutes to play and I am sure we can do it.”
Selangor did find the net after Buriram United’s goal through Mohammad Abualnadi, only for that attempt to be disallowed for offside while Brazilian striker Chrigor Moraes steered the ball just wide of goal.
In the second half, Boumous stabbed a left-footed shot against the base of the left post as the home side ended the night in defeat.
Kim missed the towering presence of Mamadou Diara in the heart of Selangor’s defence but the Senegalese is expected to be available for the return as Buriram United also welcome back striker Guilherme Bissoli, who missed Wednesday’s match through suspension.
“We did not give them many chances,” said Kim. “I think they only had one big chance and another one late in the first half.
“But I believe we created more chances than the opponents, so there are positives. I want to encourage our players to gain more confidence because confidence is very important. We will go there and attack them.” – aseanutdfc.com
