KUALA LUMPUR: Two early goals by Urawa Red Diamonds killed the spirit of Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) and contributed to the latter’s 0-5 loss in their last-16 clash of the 2022 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League at Stadium Saitama in Japan yesterday.
JDT chief coach Hector Bidoglio admitted that the two early goals, a penalty kick by Alexander Scholz in the eighth minute and a freekick conversion by David Moberg Karlsson in the 19th minute, took the wind out of JDT’s fight.
“We also did not distribute our passes the way we normally played but instead sent long balls. I reminded the players to stick to our match philosophy and to move the ball better as a team in the second half.
“It’s not easy to play against clubs from Japan. They are Asian giants and Urawa are also two-time champions. We will step up our play but it will take time,” he said in a post on the official Facebook of the club, Johor Southern Tigers, today.
Bidoglio said there was no room for error when playing at the top level of Asian football, with players’ awareness and ability to make decisions playing a crucial role.
Saying JDT had been improving every year in the AFC Champions League, he pledged to help them scale greater heights.
In yesterday’s match, Urawa Red Diamonds led 3-0 in the first half, with goals from Scholz and Karlsson, who scored his second goal in 39th minute, before substitute Kasper Junker netted two, in the 84th minute and second-half injury time.
The defeat by coach Ricardo Rodriguez Suarez’s team, the 2007 and 2017 champions, dashed JDT’s hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals, after having created history by being the first Malaysian club to clear the group stage.
JDT will now shift their focus to the FA Cup final against Terengganu FC, which will be held at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Sept 10, apart from gunning for their ninth consecutive title in the Super League.
JDT are leading comfortably in the Super League after collecting 38 points from 14 matches, while their nearest challengers, Sabah FC, are on 35 points from 16 matches and Negeri Sembilan are lying third with 32 points from 17 matches. - Bernama