Just A Few Things: Selangor Vs. KL

Credit: FA Selangor

Apa Terjadi?

A good old derby would not be complete if there isn’t any chaos happening anytime during the match. But that is what was served during one bewildering incident that perhaps everyone is still trying to make sense and perhaps they still don’t know what caused the ref to blow the whistle. Following a corner, Guilherme De Paula was able to head the ball in. This is where it gets murky and on a side note, apologies for messing up the chronicle of events.

The goal was disallowed, then the referee had a discussion with the linesman, pointed to the spot, but linesman flagged again to restart discussions and the referee ultimately give the penalty as the final decision. Guilherme De Paula scored the resulting penalty, but no one in the crowd still don’t have any idea what warranted the decision (One fan though said that Markovic’s shirt was pulled as headed the ball). Not even the highlight reel showed any conclusive evidence on why the referee pointed to the spot.

Selangor felt aggrieved that a penalty was given against them in such circumstances. So they feel karma was dealt when they were given their own penalty late in stoppage time after substitute Sean Eugene Selvaraj was bought down in the box. Sandro stepped up and scored the winner. It was perhaps a deserving win, but the home side made it hard for themselves. They need to get it together because up next for Selangor is a difficult away match to Johor Darul Takzim.

Welcome Back, Endrick

This match saw the return of Selangor’s Brazilian central midfielder, Endrick Dos Santos into the starting line-up since he got injured during the Red Giants’ 1-0 win over Terengganu at home a few months ago. Endrick bossed the midfield with his bombing runs and passes as he was almost all over the pitch.

He was able to support his wingers by drifting into the half-space, getting out of a few tight situations and played the necessary simple yet effective passes. He was the most hardworking player in that pitch, in front of K. Sarkunan who did the dirty work by being the destroyer. FA Selangor named Endrick as the man-of-the-match that shows how much of a good job he did.

Ashmawi’s Return

Beneath the chaos saw Ashmawi Yakin’s first start this season after a turbulent 2018 where everything didn’t go to plan for the defender. But here, he was a lot more composed. He knew how to position himself when a KL attack was coming and didn’t unnecessarily rush out to stop that could’ve resulted in the space behind him exposed.

He did Ok to not overexert on his duties and stop whatever KL has to offer going forward. Save for a yellow card, Ashmawi had a decent return to the starting line-up as he and Taylor Regan held up the backline well.

Sucked In

KL had a much better grip of the match on the second half compared to the first. Can you imagine had KL’s new South Korean defender, Noh Haeng-Seok’s full volley late in the match gone in instead of going agonizingly wide? It would’ve been the ultimate gut punch to Selangor and KL would’ve been further away from the drop zone.

Instead, the defeat now sees KL dragged back closer to the relegation zone after FELDA’s crazy 5-4 win and PKNP’s improbable draw against Johor Darul Takzim. It was a huge setback, and they have a somewhat tough run of fixtures before the next crucial relegation six-pointer against FELDA United.

KL has a home tie against Melaka next along with visits to Terengganu and Pahang before hosting FELDA on July 10th. Compared to that fixture run, FELDA’s run is slightly easier with a trip to PJ City and home matches against Perak and Selangor.