Johor Darul Takzim overturned the odds to march into the Malaysia Cup final, after defeating Felda United 6-5 on aggregate.
Felda seized a slight advantage during the first leg last week, where they secured a 4-3 victory, but the Southern Tigers capitalized on their home advantage in the second leg, by running through as 3-1 victors on the day.
With Safiq Rahim back in the starting line-up, Johor DT started the game brightly; Figueroa even having a clear-cut chance as early as on the 4th minute mark. But Irfan Bakti’s men looked relatively solid on the defensive zone, and they were looking to capitalize on Johor’s mistakes via counter attacks.
Problem was, Bojan Hodak’s troops were equally organized as well, as they didn’t commit too many men forward. On the 28th minute mark, Jorge Diaz was brought down outside the penalty box. Figueroa stepped up and fired a terrific free-kick attempt home to make it 4-4 on aggregate.
But Felda never gave up and immediately seized advantage moments later, when Raimi slotted the ball into the back of the net to make it 5-4 on the day. It was sort of a reminder that they weren’t intimidated by the boisterous atmosphere in Larkin.
Jorge Diaz though, had other ideas as just five minutes later, he fired a grounded shot, which rattled against the post.
After the break, Johor DT picked up where they left off, as they continued to dominate possession, though with Felda providing sufficient response in terms of containing their attacks.
But on the 63rd minute mark, Figueroa and Diaz combined again, with Figueroa this time producing a solid header to make it 2-1 on the night. And just 10 minutes later, Bojan’s men further strengthened their lead, as Amri Yahya audaciously chipped over the goalkeeper to make it 3-1 and 6-5 on aggregate.
The victory ensured a Malaysia Cup final spot for Johor DT, where they will be taking on Pahang next weekend.
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