Technical review of Crocs against Selangor: It’s time to work hard

The second game of the Peninsular Tour for Sarawak saw the team play agains a much stronger side (we would say a very strong side) who just won the Malaysia Cup in 2015.

Preparation:
This time around, the preparation for the game was less intensive compared to the previous match. This could be the result of the training conducted the day before the game. It is a pleasant sight however to see Sarawak opt to invest for a proper fitness coach as the intensity of the fitness drill show how the team will play in the upcoming game. Based on our observation, we can say that the team is still not match fit, but are heading in that direction. Ball work will need improvement

How we lined-up:
Iqbal Suhaimi (Shahril Sa’ari 45’) (GK) – Ramesh Lai Ban Huat (Dzulazlan Ibrahim 71’), Riduwan Ma’on (Dzulazlan Ibrahim 71’), Ronny Harun (Rodney Calvin Akwensivie 82’), Davide Grassi – Robert Alviž (Joseba Garmendia 45’), Gurusamy Govandar Kandasamy (Shahrol Saperi 57’), Ashri Chuchu (Mohd Akmal Mohd Noor 71’), Partiban Janasekaran (Nur Syamie Iszuan Amin 65’) – Shreen Tambi (Muhammad Azrie Basalie 77’), Syahrul Azwari Ibrahim (Hafis Saperi 83’).

A conventional shaped 4-4-2

How the opponent lined-up:
Norazlan Razali (Muhd Zharif Irfan Hishamuddin 77’) (GK) – Robert Cornthwaite (Mohd Rizal Fahmi Ab Rosid 77’), Shahrom Kalam (Mohd Razman Roslan 45’), Bunyamin Omar (Mohd Azrif Nasrulhaq Badrulhisham 45’), Raimi Md Nor (Mohd Azmi Muslim 65’) – Nazmi Faiz Mansor (Saiful Riduwan Selamat 73’), Hafiz Kamal (Veenod Subramaniam 67’), Ahmad Hazwan Bakri (R. Gopinathan 45’), Andik Vermansyah (Mohd Fittri Syazwan Raduwan 65’) – Mauro Andrés Olivi (Adam Nor Azlin 77’), Patrick Ronaldinho Wleh (Abdul Hadi Yahya 77’)

A conventional 4-4-2

How we perform:
Sarawak played a high line of defence. They were virtually playing a 4-6-0 formation most of the time, with no striker up front.
Pro: Short passes, fast counter attack in the first 20 minutes. Iqbal saved 5 goal attempt.
Con: Davide & Ronny are still adapting to each others gameplay. Player’s match fitness is still not up to the level yet, most of the time chasing shadows, physical difference compared to Selangor players. Our midfielders lack ideas, with irrelevant imports playing as a midfield masterminds. Finishing was poor

What’s the score?
Selangor 2-0 Sarawak (Patrick Ronaldinho Wleh, Hafiz Kamal)

How the goal scored:
Selangor 1st goal: 61’ Patrick Ronaldinho Wleh well-timed run to beat his marker, headed in a perfect cross by Andik Vermansyah from the right.
Selangor 2nd goal: 64’ Hafiz Kamal coolly curled the ball past helpless Shahril. Free-kick was awarded when Ramesh Lai pulled Andik’s shorts in the process to stop a goal scoring opportunity, just outside the box.

Match Statistic:

How the players fared.
Starting players:
Iqbal S– 8 – Played the first half with superb goalkeeping display. Made five important saves throughout his first half appearance to deny Selangor a scoring chance. Good distance in goal kick.
Davide G – 6 – A mixed game for him. Nearly allowed Patrick to score from a free header in the 7th minute by mistiming the cross. Lost possession while defending to Patrick in the 15th minute. A bit quiet in the first half & came back commanding in the second half. Picked up a slight knock, but nothing to be worried about.
Ronny H– 5 – adapting to the new game plan which implemented alot of ground balls, reducing his chances to provide his favourite long ball forward trademark. Come 20th minute, long ball passes were mostly inaccurate. A bit out of position in most attacking moves and lost his marker during the opponent’s first goal. Could be the sign of lacking match fitness.
Ramesh L– 6 – A mixed performance by him today. Conceded a free-kick just outside the box. Needs to avoid unnecessary long pass forward. Overall still a lot too improve.
Riduwan M – 6 – A much improved game by him today. Showing a balance of attack & defence today in the first 20 minutes. Lacks the vision when delivering long balls upfront. Poor marking come the 20th minute, Olivi easily cruised past him to make a shot.
K Gurusamy – 7 – Despite lacking match fitness, produced a good percentage of passing completion (84%) in the first half. Wins the ball from the heart of midfield and distributing mostly short passes, to create space and pulls the opponent into the area. Nearly resulted an opponent goal after he mistimed his back pass. But overall his presence kept the opponent attack at bay and added confidence to the back four, and also including the goalkeeper’s.
Roberto A – 4 – Concedes 3 fouls, mostly unnecessary. Not very mobile in midfield & very poor in terms of positioning. His lack of ideas and the 60% passing accuracy undoubtedly makes him a poor candidate to fill in the final import slot, which is reserved for a midfielder. At this rate, our local boys could do better. Roberto has the physique, but lacks the composure, technique & creativity.
J Partiban – 5 – All we can see of this player is his speed and crossing ability. Great asset, but at times, needs to time his runs and conserve energy. Not much pressing or tracking back seen from him. Could do better.
Ashri C – 6 – Very energetic in the first 20 minutes. Mistimed a pass inside the penalty box which nearly led to a goal. Very hardworking on the pitch, but will need to time his pressing, runs and communication more to link better with other players. Need to improve his match fitness.
Shreen T – 5 – Playing a central forward role, but was not really threatening the opposition due to his small size. Very aggressive & robust. His positioning in attacks is too deep, causing the team lacking the man forward to attack the opponent goal.
Syahrul A – 6 – Playing as a striker role today in the absence of Gilmar. Was a victim of robust tackling by Selangor midfield and was down injured in the 35th minute. A good link up play with Ashri upfront, but lacking the opportunity to exploit any space due to the need to back track & support the midfield area.

Subs:
Shahril S – 5 – Two goals in quick succession, took him by surprise. The first goal, was caused by the lack of protection from his defenders, plus the lack of command from him to organize the back four. The second goal, is just simply unreachable. Overall, unlucky to concede those two goals. Good distance in his goal kick this time around, but need to be more consistent.
Joseba G – 4 – Merely a passenger in the second half. Not sure what is his strong side. To be honest, Shahrol is way better in term of positioning & passing. The lack in vision and positioning is a bit worrying.
Shahrol S – 6 – A better performer in midfield but unable to save the team from the 2 quick goals. Was impressed in his ball distribution today.
Nur Shamie – 4 – Played on the right flank. Did not provide any speed or urgency on the flanks. Poor in making decision especially when the opponent is pressing hard on our attacker. Still has a long way to improve as a player and needs to build up his figure.
Dzulazlan I – 5 – Added resilience on the right back position. Some careless passing in his own half had caused a little bit of panic. Some rough tackles added to the dismal performances in general. Still showing signs of lacking in match fitness.
Akmal – 5 – Not much he can do on the left flank today. The team keeps on losing possession in the midfield area. Made some important tackles on the left flank and that’s it. No contribution to team attack.
Azrie – 5 – Brings flair to the midfield, but has yet to enjoy the kind of football he likes in a team. Does not really put his strength to good use. Was in a good position to score, but easily dispossessed.
Rodney C – 5 – The only local boy with the physical difference in the field. Despite the young age, his cross breed feature is really a good advantage to provide the team with extra strength in defence. With proper guidance could become the core player for future squad.
Hafis S – 6 – Came in and gave a new energy boost forward. Promising display by this kid. Good work rate.

Conclusion:
Against a much stronger opponent, the flaws are showing, in a good way that is, especially when the team solely relying on foreign striker. So we can say this is a good test for the team. The lack of vision by the midfield are not helping the forward to create enough chances. Most of the time, the team only relies on speedy wingers & full-backs to create a scoring opportunity for no one.

Goalkeeper – Iqbal & Shahril are both decent goalkeepers that can provide a cover throughout the season.  Highly rated Florian is expected to be the understudy to both these senior goalkeeper.

Defence –  Grassi has added strength and command to the Crocs defences. Hairol, Ronny, Rodney, Dzulfadli will be competing for the CB slot. Meanwhile, we have our Right Back position also sorted out with Ramesh, Dzulazlan, Dzulfadli in the pecking order.  Despite that we are facing a slight problem at the left with only Ramesh & Riduwan fit. Thanaraj is still rehabilitating & Mazwandi is believed to be out for maybe half a season.

Midfield – This central midfield position is still a big question mark, with Shahrol & Gurusamy the only players suitable to fill in that central position. Since both are defensive minded, the team lacks a creative midfielder, hence the need for the team to find a player which is able to create chances, and provide good work rate, good physical size & has an eye for passing.

On the flanks, we have abundance of options available. The only issue will be consistency & the question of whether they will be receiving those much needed passes to operate? We currently have Syahrul, Ashri, Partiban, Shamie, Akmal. All possess the speed to overlap.

Forward – This is a worrying position for Sarawak. With Gilmar & Makeche out injured, the team will need to dig deep to find a solution to this. Currently, we’ve seen K Rajagobal utilizes Syahrul & Shreen as forwards, but those two seems ineffective. With the inclusion of Sufizal from the team due to commitment, and the lack of options available, it will be a headache for Rajagobal if Gilmar could not recover before the season starts. Makeche is expected to be back in March and this could trigger panic shopping for either local or import strikers in the market. This however will depend on the club’s target.

Time to work hard for the players as 2016 season will be tougher than last year.