The dismissal of Sarawak former coach Robert Alberts was abrupt but many saw the need for change, likening it with the situation in several Malaysian teams like ATM FA, Kelantan and JDT which scored more favourable results after their coaches were given the boot.
But as always, Sarawak is different.
The first game of new interim coach Fuad Grbersic saw Sarawak going down 0-2 to Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT). The result continued Sarawak’s poor form which now stretches to a woeful five games, with the Crocs winless away from home to date.
The rumour that Fuad was implementing ‘Tiki Taka’ in his tactics immediately changed to ‘Teka Teki’ (question marks) last Sunday as the Crocs saw themselves struggling to make decent passes in a game controlled by JDT.
But regardless, there is hope for Sarawak if the game against JDT was to be used as an evaluation.
For the first 35 minutes of play, the Crocs made the cash-rich JDT players sweat as they came forward with neat passes and dangerous counter attacks. JDT coach and manager Roberto Carlos Mario Gómez, was seen standing and yelling at his boys as the Crocs inched closer to that all important opening goal.
Joseph Kalang, Ivan Fatic and Billy Mehmet almost made the 10,000 odd crowd roar of approval, but JDT and national goalkeeper Farizal Maslias was in form and had to spoil the party for Fuad’s men by doing numerous acrobatic saves.
But it all went down hill after that. Passes started to become disarray, and some players looked lost with a few moving out of their position. The Crocs looked tired, and JDT took full advantage of this.
This was when Fuad started toeing the sidelines of the field. He was seen yelling and holding his head with disappointment as his boys, now in the second half of play, defended their turf from a rampaging JDT attack.
A two goal leak however was inevitable as the Crocs defence line lost concentration.
Nonetheless, we would like to point out that despite the defeat, the Crocs did show some promise as they held and matched JDT in the first 35-minutes. JDT is not only super rich, but they also boast 70% of the national Malaysian squad, making them ‘sort of’ like the second national team of Malaysia.
In terms of facilities, they are the best in Malaysia, and perhaps the region, that even the national team might have a run for their money if compared head to head, and their ultras, the Boys of Straits are basically funded and supported by their ruler, hence perhaps why FAS bowed their heads and gave JDT fans the better view when their supporters came to Stadium Negeri.
So holding JDT and eventually going down 0-2 is not entirely bad for Fuad as there is a scene of change in tactics and game play for the Crocs.
To us at SarawakCrocs.com, if Fuad had it his way in player selection, things might work differently for Sarawak, but he is taking over from Robert Alberts and it was very obvious from last Saturday that both of them do not share similar tactics. In the game against JDT, Fuad deployed 5 defenders to the surprise of many and his side still came out attacking.
But then again, this was just Fuad’s first game and it is still too early to tell if he can change the fortunes of the Crocs.
The game against Selangor however, would be the real litmus test for Fuad because Selangor shares many similar traits to Sarawak, and unlike JDT, they don’t have the luxury of being the ‘second national team’.
