Technical review of Crocs against PKNS: Still too early to judge

It will be unfair to judge the performance of the team by just only one competitive match. A decent win last night to be honest but there’s still lots of thing to do to improve the squad especially in the midfield area.

It was a pleasant view to see a much proper warm-up drill lead by Michal Horný. More interesting techniques were seen to be introduced and more ground ball work was done before the game to improve the ball control and short passes. This is one of the highlight of the game today. One thing Sarawak lacked few years back was a proper fitness drill.

HOW WE LINED-UP
Shahril S (GK) – Ramesh L, Riduwan, Hairol M, Davide G – Garmendia J, Shahrol S, Ashri C, Syahrul A – Shreen T, Gilmar D.
A conventional shaped 4-4-2

HOW THE OPPONENTS LINED-UP
Mohd Nor Haziq (GK) – Shahrul, Sivakumar, Gonzalo, Farid – Nizam, Guerra, Thinagaran, Nazrin, Azrin – Diego
A slightly wide 4-5-1

HOW WE PERFORMED
Pros Short passes, fast movement, flanks, solid center back, very commanding Davide.
Cons: Short term focus, both Joseba & Roberto looked like an average player so far

PLAYER RATINGS AND COMMENTS:

1. Shahril S. – 7 – a decent game, made some important saves throughout the game. Goalkick might need some distance. Overall, reliable.
2. Davide G. – 8 – very commanding at the back. Intercepting most aerial balls & positioning Communicates well with the back four despite language barrier. A very good signing.
3. Hairol M. – 8 – confidence growing partnering Davide at the back. Winning some important interceptions today, mostly aerial.
4. Ramesh L.– 7 – A mixed performance by him today. Was solid in the first half, once swapped to the left, tendency to leave out position. Overall good game.
5. Riduwan – 5 – decent performance, but with aging legs, he is susceptible to fast flankers such as Thinagaran. A good back-up to the squad, but might not be the same form as he was when he was at Johor FC, 5 years ago.
6. Shahrol S – 6 – Roams the midfield and supporting the defence from midfield. Decent display, a slight hint of lacking match fitness. Adapting to short & fast passes.
7. Joseba G – 5 – For an import slot, this player looks average. Decent passing, at times misread the game causing opponent to break from a dangerous position. Lacking those idea in the midfield to orchestrate the attack.
8. Syahrul Azwari – 7 – Energetic. Shows a different class of talent & giving a new dimension to the new look Sarawak attack. Assisting Gilmar for the first goal.
9. Ashri C. – 6 – looks slightly lacking match fitness, but overall a much improved player than last year. Could improve along the way.
10. Shreen T – 6.5 – Energetic as ever, supporting Gilmar upfront and providing those forward press. At times will need to tone down his temper & aggression.
11. Gilmar D – 8 – Full of energy, good positioning, good composure. An ideal signing for Rajagobal tactic’s. With good supply of ball, he could be a lethal goal scorer. An aggressive player too, need to keep in check at all times to avoid confrontation with opponent, especially Argentinian players (note the Brazil-Argentina rivalry)

Subs:

1. Dzulazlan I – 6 – Brought in to replace Riduwan. A cautious display, supporting attack at times. Needs to build up his confidence especially against big boys & fast flankers.
2. Roberto Alvis – 7 – Brought in to replace Joseba. At first, he looks lost in the midfield area, nearly caused panic to the back four after a careless back-pass header. Showed eagerness in the midfield but passing still average. Offered to take free kicks & corner kicks. Showed a moment of brilliance by scoring that curling free-kick. Overall passing still to a level not very impressive for an import slot. More to see of this fella.
3. Rodney Celvin – 6 – Brought in to replace Hairol. A shaky performance at first, but with the help & guidance by Grassi, improved well. Made some important interception. Need to build up that confidence.
4. Partiban P – 7 – Brought in to replace Shahrol. Made some important runs, won a free kick leading to the second goal. Made some important crosses throughout the game.
5. Azrie – 5.5 – Brought in to replace Gilmar. Still adapting to intense pressure and much more physical challenge in field football. Has got the technique & will need match exposure to bring out the talent. Made one brilliant pass to find a free Akmal on the left that nearly led to a goal. Good eye for pass.
6. Nur Shamie – 5 – Brought in to replace Ashri. Physically need to be more built to compete with the Super League level.
7. Hafis – 5.5 – Brought in to replace Syahrul. Made some important forward runs, but the physical competing with the likes of Premier League outfit, will need to buck up and need to be more built up.
8. Akmal – 5.5 – Brought in to replace Shreen. This boy got speed. Had a golden opportunity to score but shot it straight towards Mohd Nor Haziq.
9. Alif – was on the touchline but didn’t make it

CONCLUSION:
While the results don’t matter at this stage. Game time & match fitness is key to prepare the team for the upcoming season. Most of the players will be getting game time. The major concern for Sarawak now is that key players (Gurusamy, Ronny, Thanaraj, Makeche) are injured and they are mostly the backbone of the so called Rajagobal dream team.

The search for the one import midfield slot could be decided in the upcoming friendly against Selangor this coming 19 January 2016.

Another concern is, the absence of key figure in midfield, showing how brittle the current midfield is. Today’s game showed that Gabriel Guerra penetrated those passes and runs easily against the current crop of midfield. Just imagine a much more competent team doing the same. Improvement needed in the midfield area.

On the game play, the team will need to adapt well to the new tactics. Hoping the team will gain full fitness come 30th January.