ISKANDAR PUTERI: Despite having no chance to qualify for the next round, Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) will try their best to win against Thai club BG Pathum United in their Group I action of the Asian Champions League (ACL) at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, tomorrow.
JDT head coach Esteban Solari said their team would show the perfect game pattern in terms of strength, mentality and commitment.
“Despite having no chance to go to the next round, it is still an important game for us because we want to keep improving. In order to grow, we need to face big challenges and BG Pathum United is a tough team, they have lots of quality players and compete very well.
“Malaysian football needs to improve with a league that is improving like the Thai league, it is nice to have this challenge. JDT is prepared and the players are focused too, everybody wants to perform well and win the game,“ he said at a pre-match press conference at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, here today.
At the same time, JDT winger Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi said he was ready to give 100 per cent for tomorrow’s game in hoping to win the final ACL game for the Southern Tigers.
“I have prepared for tomorrow’s game with the same motivation and mentality. I want to show my best against BG Pathum United. Our team wants to win the game tomorrow, no matter who score the goals,“ Arif Aiman said.
Meanwhile, BG Pathum head coach Surachai Jaturapattarapong acknowledged JDT as a tough opponent but would do their best to finish the ACL campaign with a win.
“We will use players with the best conditions for tomorrow’s game because this is an ACL game, the highest football level in Asia.
“There are three players, Heberty Fernandes de Andrade, Bergson da Silva and Arif Aiman that we have to be careful with because they are the stars of JDT. Without these players, the potential of JDT will drop 30 or 40 per cent,“ he said.
After five matches, JDT is third with six points while BG Pathum United is last in the group without a single point.–Bernama
