City Boys show grit to book Malaysia Cup semi-final spot


Good fight: Kuala Lumpur's Gorka Larrucea Arrien (left) challenges for the ball with Terengganu's Akhyar Rashid (right) during the Malaysia Cup quarter-final second-leg match against Terengganu at Cheras Football Stadium in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.—MUHAMAD SHAHRIL ROSLI/The Star

KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur had to dig deep before showing their resilience to defeat Terengganu 2-1 in the Malaysia Cup quarter-final second leg at the Cheras Stadium on Sunday (Feb 15), sealing their place in the semi-finals.

Both teams came into the tie level at 1-1 from the first leg in Kuala Terengganu last week, but the City Boys edged through 3-2 on aggregate.

Terengganu started brightly and took control from kickoff, going ahead in the 20th minute when Akhyar Rashid curled a superb effort into the top corner, leaving Kuala Lumpur goalkeeper Quincy Kammeraad rooted to the spot.

The Turtles continued to dictate proceedings and carried their lead into half-time.

Despite the City Boys’ efforts to get themselves back into the fight, opportunities failed to translate into goals, as Terengganu goalie Rahadiazli Rahalim kept his side safe. 

But Kuala Lumpur finally got their break when Spanish midfielder Victor Ruiz scored the equaliser in the 78th minute, tapping in a cross to put his side level.

Ruiz then played his part in Kuala Lumpur’s second goal, providing a lovely assist to substitute Paulo Josue, who calmly put it past Rahadiazli to secure their ticket to the semi-finals in the 89th minute 

But Kuala Lumpur thought they had another goal when Kpah Sherman tried to chip a ball towards the goal in injury time, and a mistake by Rahadiazli saw him almost concede, but he saved it on the line 

Kuala Lumpur will either meet Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) or Melaka in the semi-finals in April.

 

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