Unshaken Giants

Selangor vow to bounce back after two straight defeats

PETALING JAYA: The Red Giants will pick themselves up!

Selangor coach P. Maniam is not losing sleep over his side’s two consecutive defeats in the Super League and said they would bounce back against Ministry of Finance (MOF) in the second round of the FA Cup scheduled at the Cheras Football Stadium on Sunday.

Maniam’s men fell 4-1 to Terengganu on Feb 10 and suffered a 3-1 defeat to Pahang on Feb 24 but he believes seasoned players like skipper Razman Roslan, veteran forward Mohd Amri Yahyah and Spanish striker Rufino Segovia can get the team back to winning ways.

“We lost two games in a row to better teams and this is normal in football.

“We need to pick ourselves up and move on,” said the former Selangor player.

“We’ve the FA Cup, a different competition to focus on next.

“I’m confident that the team will do much better as we play more matches.

“The fans are being critical of the team but it’s OK, they are entitled to their opinion and I respect them. We will just get back to training and work harder to give a better performance in the next match.”

Selangor’s Spanish holding midfielder Alfonso de la Cruz played poorly and had to be taken out in the 32nd minute in the loss to Pahang.

Maniam hinted disappointment over the 31-year-old import, but declined to comment on the midfielder’s future with the Red Giants.

“He’s been working hard but was not involved in our attacking build-ups in Pahang.

“Again, it’s still very early in the season and I hope he’ll get better.

“Whether he’ll stay or not, I can’t comment.”