Junior Rhinos manager urges caution against Kedah
KOTA KINABALU: Sabah will look to strengthen their grip in the race for the top four when they take on Selangor United FC at the Selayang Municipal Council Stadium today.
The Junior Rhinos are currently second in the 11-team Group A standing levelled on 34 points with Kedah, who lead by virtue of superior goals difference.
Team manager Mohd Yassin Aman, however, stressed that their focus would be on Selangor United FC rather than Kedah, knowing full well another three points could edge them closer to securing a place in the quarterfinals.
Yassin also expressed hope for a crucial positive result before the league takes its two-month break after this.
“The atmosphere within the squad is good, especially after the 4-0 (away) win against the Armed Forces (ATM) last week.
“It has certainly lifted the players’ spirit and hopefully, it would be a good sign for the team going into the match tomorrow (today).
“The target is to take all three points as this is very important since the league will take a twomonth break...we want to be in a better position when we resume the fixtures,” he said yesterday.
Having said that, Yassin advised the players to not be overconfident against their ninth placed opponents.
He believed the match will be a tough, judging from experience of their first meeting here where only a solitary strike from defender Evan Wensley Wenceslaus earned them the 1-0 win in March.
“The first meeting was a closely contested match which ended in a narrow win for us. So we can expect another tough game and that is why I want the players to give their all on the pitch.
“I’m happy to note that the players are ready and know their responsibility. We will give our best,” he added.
Yassin also hoped that Sabah would continue to be ruthless in front of the goal, just like they did against ATM which resulted in their biggest win of the season.
“I want the players to be sharper because the team showed that creating chances is not a problem... finishing it is, but we have looked into the area and thus the comfortable ATM win.
“However, I still want to see the players be more clinical and if we can do that, I believe we will achieve the desired result,” he said.
Meanwhile, Evan will return from suspension to provide a timely boost for the Junior Rhinos backline.
With Evan available again, Yassin said the team will be at their strongest to face Selangor United FC.
The other matches today will see Misc-Mifa take on Kelantan and Perlis facing Selangor while on May 10, the fixtures are Pahang against Johor Darul Takzim III and ATM hosting Malacca.