Teong Kim hopes fans will be patient as Perak continue rebuilding

Stop right there!: Negri Sembilan's Che Rashid Halim (left) trying to stop Sabah's Rawilson Batuil from advancing during their Super Leaque match. The match ended 1-1. Bernama.

PETALING JAYA: “If I had planted durian yesterday, it will bear fruit only after seven years.”

This was the reply from Perak coach Datuk Lim Teong Kim when he was asked to explain their performance after their fourth defeat in a row in the Super League.

“It’s only been four to five months for our young players to train. What’s important is to be patient. It’s not that we don’t want to win but the supporters are angry because we lost and are sitting at the bottom,” said Teong Kim.

On Monday night, Perak fell to a narrow 0-1 defeat at the hands of Kuala Lumpur at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium.

The narrow defeat against the 2022 AFC Cup runner-up means Perak have lost four times in a row starting against Pahang (0-3), Penang (1-3) and Johor Darul Ta’zim (0-5).

Teong Kim has a valid point in stressing this message. He hopes that the team’s loyal supporters can continue to be patient with the process being done in rebuilding the team, especially considering the resources that the team currently have.

“They (the players) understand (the planning) but it takes time to emphasise what is being taught.

“If I don’t allow them to continue with open play – where they can make mistakes – their development will not happen.

“I don’t have experienced players, so I have to teach them so that they can think for themselves how to play and this is the process.

“It’s just like teaching your child. I’m doing what’s best for the players and the team, so I ask Perak supporters to be patient.

“If you’re getting married tomorrow, you also take time to have children, right? So everything takes time,” said Teong Kim.

At the same time, Teong Kim insisted that his men still showed the mentality to win even if the results showed otherwise.

“The winning mentality is not related to winning games. It’s true that we failed in three or four games but the players didn’t give up, that’s the winning mentality.

“We lost the previous match and today (yesterday) we got up with a good performance.

“This is the process that all players go through,” he added.