JOHOR BARU: Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) are on a roll in the Malaysia Cup competition.
But the Southern Tiger’s coach, Bojan Hodak, has warned his men not to take their foot off the pedal in the remaining two Group C fixtures so as to qualify for the quarter-finals as group champions.
“JDT are not there (in the quarter-finals) yet. I’m happy with my men’s performance. They defended and attacked well as a team,” said Hodak.
High-riding JDT lead Group C with 10 points from three wins and a draw. Second-placed Kelantan (6pts) and Armed Forces (5pts) are still in contention for the top two spots. Bottom-placed Penang, with just one point, have only a mathematical chance.
On Tuesday, JDT consolidated their position at the top of the standings with a 5-0 thrashing of Premier League side Penang. Armed Forces kept their quarter-final hopes alive with a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Kelantan in Kota Baru.
JDT will face Armed Forces at the Selayang Stadium on Friday. The soldiers held JDT to a goalless draw in the reverse fixture in Larkin.
“It’s always hard playing against Forces ... their style of play doesn’t suit us. So, I want my players to play as well as they did against Penang,” said Hodak.
Penang coach K. Devan has advised his players to take the defeat as a lesson in their football development, saying “there is no shame in the loss because we gave JDT a hard time”.
“The core of our players are from the FAM Cup ... half of them have never played in the Malaysia Cup before,” said Devan.
“We finished third in the Premier League and, so far, I’m very happy with my players.”
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