KUALA LUMPUR, March 8 (Bernama) -- A local football analyst believes that Malaysia Super League champions Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) have what it takes to overcome Thailand’s Buriram United and make history by advancing to the quarter-finals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League Elite (ACL Elite) competition.
Mohd Rizar Mohd Noor feels that the Southern Tigers have their own unique abilities to sink Buriram in the return leg of their round-of-16 match at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri, Johor on Tuesday (March 11).
The teams drew the first-leg tie 0-0 at the Buriram Stadium in Thailand on March 4.
“If (JDT coach) Hector (Bidoglio) adopted a defensive approach in the first leg due to the pitch condition, then the return leg should be a different ball game altogether. He will opt for an attacking lineup as this is a do-or-die game. I know Hector is not a fan of extra time, so he will surely want to get it over with in regulation time.
“There is a possibility that Juan Muniz may be in the starting 11 while Samu Castillejo should start as JDT unleash their strongest team,” Mohd Rizar, who is also an experienced sports writer, told Bernama today.
Ahead of the return leg tie, dubbed the clash between two Southeast Asian giants, Mohd Rizar said JDT must be vigilant of the threat posed by the deadly attacking triumvirate of Suphanat Mueanta, Martin Boakye and Guilherme Bissoli.
“(JDT) must watch the movement of Suphanat. If they can keep him quiet, they can nullify the threat posed by Buriram, who are coached by Osmar Loss. Having said that, Boakye and Bissoli must also be contained,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mohd Rizar said the presence of former Valencia and AC Milan hitman Castillejo would give Bidoglio more options upfront should he decide to rest Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi.
“In the first-leg tie, I found that Arif Aiman was kind of confused when Castillejo also occupied the same space on the field. Hector must use these two players wisely. For me, I’d prefer to rest Arif Aiman for the return leg,” he said.
However, he was quick to admit that Arif Aiman does have a knack for rising to the occasion during crucial ties, seeing how the national player has proven his mettle by netting five goals in the ACL Elite thus far.
For the record, Anderson Lopes of Yokohama F. Marinos, Jasir Fadil Asani (Gwangju FC) and Salem Mohammed Shafi Al Dawsari (Al Hilal SFC) are the joint top scorers with seven goals each, while Al Nassr superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Ahli Saudi FC’s Riyad Mahrez are next with six goals each.
The March 11 return leg will be the third meeting between JDT and Buriram in this season’s ACL Elite, having also drawn 0-0 in the league stage at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium last December.
-- BERNAMA
