Kuala Lumpur City extended our unbeaten run at home to 22 matches after the 3-3 draw in the season opening Super League campaign derby game against Selangor on Friday, but according to head coach Bojan, it could have been a different story altogether, had it not been for Gallifuoco’s sending-off in the 72nd minute, when the City Boys were in the ascendancy, though he remained happy with the point gained to get things started.
Speaking to The Voice of the City Boys, Bojan thought the match was of great value to both sets of supporters. “If you are a fan, and you paid for your ticket, you would be happy with this open game that produced six goals. It was an interesting clash with a red card, plenty of chances and penalties”.
He was very proud of the City Boys’ never say die attitude that night. “This is a hardworking team where I saw 11 guys, then later 10 guys, fighting on the field. We deserved the one point because we were put in a position where we came back twice. And that red card, it changed everything for us”, he said.
Asked if he thought a draw was a fair result for the City Boys, considering the major decisions that went against us during the match, the Croatian was quick to respond, “All teams want to win, we want to win too, but Selangor are one of the top teams in the league. They’re much better than last year. And we played the last 20 minutes or so with 10 players. It’s a fair result”.
On criticism of Irfan’s performance, the 50-year-old defended the player, “I count on Irfan as I do with anyone called upon in my team. He did a fine job except for a mistake during that dead ball situation. In my opinion he did well and he remains an option we have”.
Regarding the City Boys’ two new foreign signings, Declan, who did not start the game, and Koubemba, who is still looking for his first goal, our tactician explained, “Declan played against Johor DT last week in the Charity Cup, but he has not played in competitive matches for quite some time. We will expose him slowly until he’s up to it. And Koubemba, people say that we should have brought in a bigger name. If we had the funds for such, I too would have done so. I have faith in Kevin, just watch”.
Bojan also acknowledged the growing expectations that the City Boys’ fans have but asked our fans to keep their feet firmly planted on the ground. “Maybe some teams have viewed us differently following our success last season. For us, nothing has changed. We are still one of the smaller teams with the second-lowest budget in the league, I think. So, we cannot sign top strikers and top players, but we will continue to make the best of what we have like we did”.
To read the match report of KL City vs Selangor on 4/3/2022 (Super League), please click https://kualalumpurfootball.com/2022/03/05/delays-goals-penalties-a-sending-off-extreme-passion-plenty-of-drama-in-the-klang-valley-derby/
To watch the highlights of KL City VS Selangor on 4/3/2022 (Super League), please click https://youtu.be/w-6ZynJeHnE
To watch the complete match of KL City VS Selangor on 4/3/2022 (Super League), please click https://youtu.be/6Qga884pOIA