PETALING JAYA: Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) are on a red-hot scoring streak in the Super League, and more of the same will be expected when they open their FA Cup title defence today.
The defending champions host Universiti Malaya (UM)-Damansara in the round of 16 first leg at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri, looking to pick up where they left off from last season’s meeting between the two sides – a 10-3 aggregate rout that saw JDT win the first leg 5-0 and the second 5-3.
JDT coach Xisco Munoz has plenty to be pleased about heading into the tie, with his side having found the net freely while also tightening up at the back.
The Southern Tigers kept clean sheets in three straight Super League matches – Kuching City (3-0), Kelantan (9-0) and Star City (7-0).
“Clean sheets are the most important thing for us. Football works in two directions, offensive and defensive, and the players are showing total commitment in both,’’ said Munoz.
The goals have come from all areas of the pitch. Bergson Da Silva’s hattrick in JDT’s last outing against Star City followed a treble from Iranian striker Shahab Zahedi in the Kelantan match, while Colombian centreback Kevin Medina has also chipped in with a goal – hinting at further attacking threat from deep.
Munoz, however, was quick to stress that squad depth – not individual brilliance – remains his priority as JDT juggle a congested fixture list across the Super League, Malaysia Cup, AFC Champions League Elite and Shopee Cup Asean Club Championship.
“We have a lot of important players and strikers in our squad,” he said.
“People need to understand that players cannot play every two or three days continuously – they are human beings and need recovery. We have to manage timings for the short, medium and long term.”
With Medina and Eddy Israfilov increasingly used together at the back, Munoz confirmed JDT will continue rotating between defensive systems rather than settling on one formation.
“In modern football, you cannot rely on just one system. We need different rotations and movements – sometimes we start with a back three, sometimes a back two, or a back four,” he said.
