| |
|
|
RHB Singapore Cup: White Swans banking on form finish
Paul Green
info@sleague.com
You’re only as good as your last game, they sometimes say.
Albirex Niigata (Singapore) will be hoping that statement rings true for them.
Beaten semifinalists in the RHB Singapore Cup over two legs, and even then only on penalties, they can point to their most recent matches as proof that they are very much the form team going into their third place playoff game against Thai Premier League side TTM Samut Sakhon on Saturday night.
Not only did the White Swans beat finalists Geylang United 1-0 at Bedok Stadium, in their second-leg match there, to force the game into extra time and penalties, their Great Eastern-YEO’S S.League form stands up to scrutiny as well.
Their loss in the first leg at home to Geylang had proven costly, while they had earned the right to be in the semifinals with some impressive performances firstly against Gombak United 3-1 at Jurong East Stadium and then against Tampines Rovers over two legs, winning that quarterfinal tie on penalties themselves.
Having lost 0-1 to Tampines in the east, they levelled things up at home with an identical score-line before settling the matter from the inevitable penalties that faced them after a barren half-hour of extra time.
In the Great Eastern-YEO’S S.League they wound up their season in style with a comprehensive 3-0 win over Balestier Khalsa at Jurong East Stadium on Monday evening, a win they achieved without two of their key players, Kenji Adachihara and Takatoshi Uchida, who were Indonesian Super League-bound.
Neither will start in the third-place playoff game on Saturday, nor will their suspended forward Taisuke Akiyoshi.
While the White Swans lost 0-4 at Tampines in their most recent game away from Jurong East, their fighting 2-2 draw with the Super Reds four days earlier suggested their liking for the Jalan Besar Stadium pitch, where Saturday night’s match will be played.
Their opponents, Samut Sakhon, bowed out at the semifinal stage and have only the lure of a third-place medal to console them.
They flew in on Friday and were planning on just the one training session before this game.
Albirex general manager Bogdan Brasoveanu described them as ‘inconsistent’ on the eve of the game.
“They have had some good results, but they have conceded a lot of easy goals,” he said.
“They let in six in the first leg of the semifinal to Bangkok Glass, and even though they won the second leg 4-3, that’s a lot of goals to let in.”
“We have beaten a Thai team before in the (RHB Singapore) Cup, that was Chonburi in 2006 (though the White Swans went on to lose the second leg of that affair).
Bangkok University beat Albirex in 2007 and 2008 to establish some kind of Thai stronghold over the Japanese side, but that does not concern the White Swans manager.
“If we beat this team on Saturday then our record against Thai teams will be pretty good, so we are not worried about playing a Thai team at all. It’s just another game to us.”
The Thais will be without one of their two key foreigners, Aly Camara, the Ivorian who was sent off in the semifinal second leg, so they will be putting a lot of faith in the competition’s top scorer, former Sengkang Punggol and Balestier Khalsa star Paul Bekombo Ekollo, whose six goals so far make him a hot favourite to head the scoring list even after the final.
His nearest rivals from Bangkok Glass, Chatree Chimtale and Gbenga Ajayi, only have three, so if he can help his side to a medal with a couple more goals here he should easily snare the scoring honours.
The Cameroonian has set the RHB Singapore Cup alight with his exploits, even without his ally Aly, so he must be watched as always.
Otherwise, Samut Sakhon will be at full strength and are sure to provide a lively contest.
As Brasoveanu pointed out, this Thai team may have been inconsistent, but they have produced a lot of goals and some excellent results on their way to this game.
Their 4-2 wins over the Super Reds and DPMM FC of Brunei, neither of them slouches by any means, should give any team they face cause for concern.
A veritable goal feast looks on the cards in this match, with Albirex known for their willingness to attack and to never stop running.
A third-place playoff game to thrill a large Jalan Besar Stadium crowd, no less. |
|
|