Red Giants prepare to deal with tough customers T-Team

PETALING JAYA: The Red Giants will be looking to cut the Titans down to size when they meet in a Super League match at the Selayang Municipal Council Stadium tonight.

But Selangor coach P. Maniam knows it won’t be that easy, not when T-Team have two advantages – their physical attributes and aerial threat.

All four of the Titans’ imports – strikers Farhod Tadjiyev ( Uzbekistan), Yannick N’Djeng (Cameroon) and Mamadou Samassa (Mali) and defender Abdoulaye Maiga (Mali) – are nearly 2-metre tall.

Maniam said that his side would need to “raise our game to counter T-Team’s physical game”.

“T-Team have tall players who are really good in the air. They are also good at set-pieces and long balls. They will not be an easy to team to beat.”

“We need to cut these passes and deliveries to their target men. We need to play a compact game and limit their advantages to a minimum,” said Maniam.

The Klang Valley outfit, who were touted as relegation candidates, have managed to punch above their weight to be placed sixth in the 12-team Super League standings with 17 points after 13 matches. T-Team are eighth with 18 points.

The Red Giants were weakened after losing seven key players from last season – including top striker Ahmad Hazwan Bakri, captain Mohd Shahrom Kalam and midfielder Mohd Hafiz Kamal – to other teams. They were forced to promote eight President’s Cup players to the senior side.

Maniam said that he would field his three new signings – strikers Rufino Segovia (Spain) and Amri Yahyah and Indonesian winger Andik Vermansyah – against T-Team.

“We can’t drop any more points in the second half of the league. We have the quality to raise our game now,” said Maniam.