Red Warriors ready to rumble

PETALING JAYA: Kelantan coach Bojan Hodak reckons that there’s lesser pressure on his side to defend the Malaysia Cup which will kick off on Aug 20.

The Red Warriors are drawn in Group C with east coast neighbours Terengganu, Pahang and demoted Negri Sembilan.

Hodak pointed out that Kelantan fans have accepted the fact that their current team are different compared to last season and having won the FA Cup has appeased the fans.

Last season, the Croatian led the east coast giants to the M-League treble by winning the Super League, FA Cup and the Malaysia Cup. This season they retained the FA Cup with victory over Johor Darul Takzim in June.

“There was more pressure last season when we were in the running to win the treble and this year the pressure is very much less,” said the 42-year-old coach.

“The fans have seen and accepted the fact that we are different side from the treble winning squad and the FA Cup win has also calmed the fans down.”

The former UPB-Myteam coach also cranked up the mind game ahead of the Malaysia Cup claiming that six teams – Lions XII, Selangor, Johor Darul Takzim, Pahang, Armed Forces and Kelantan are potential winners.

Hodak, however, was quick to add that his side hold an advantage because of their experience in winning seven honours in the M-League since 2010.

“We are the favourites to get past the group stage but it won’t be an easy ride. We will just focus on getting to the quarter-final stage first,” said Hodak.

“The biggest obstacle for the teams would be injuries and suspensions in the knock-out stage. The team who use their squad better will win the Malaysia Cup.”

“We are without nine key players due to a combination of national team duty and injuries so I intend to play our President Cuppers and second stringers against Selangor,” he added.