PETALING JAYA: Veteran Ivorian striker Tchetche Kipre (pic) has restored faith in the struggling Penang football team.
The 37-year-old veteran fired a brace in their 2-1 win over Negri Sembilan which finally snapped the Panthers’ winless streak after five games in the Super League.
“It feels good to get the goals, but most importantly, we played well as a unit,” said Kipre.
“It was important to get these first three points, especially at home. We tried in the last three home matches but lost all of them. I kept telling myself, we need to win, we need to win.
“To get a win, we knew a lot of effort was needed, more than what we have done previously. I told myself I needed to be in good shape, especially up front.
Once the chances came, I had to be clinical. Thank God, they did and I was able to put them away, especially against a side in good form.
“Penang punished Negri early when Kipre’s composed finish in the 13th minute stood after a VAR review confirmed he was onside.
The hosts continued to press and Australian winger Dylan Wenzel-Halls thought he had doubled their lead but this time, VAR ruled his effort out for offside.
Undeterred, Penang came out firing in the second half, and Kipre once again proved decisive.
The experienced marksman broke through the Negri backline and calmly slotted the ball past goalkeeper Azri Ghani in the 49th minute to make it 2-0.
Negri pulled one back when an attempt from Hakimi Abdullah deflected off Penang defender Faith Obilor for an own goal in stoppage time but it was too little, too late.
