This was one of those games you bring skeptics to and help them change their minds about Malaysian football. It was breathtaking, it was innovative and it was a complete masterclass, albeit one-sided.
Penang FA showcased their intentions from get go, shaping up in an offensive manner, with Faiz Subri leading their line upfront. And it only took him three minutes to break the deadlock, as he unleashed a left-footed strike from the edge of the box, leaving Nasril Nourdin helpless.
Pahang were left shell-shocked by Penang’s smash and grab move, and they struggled to compose themselves over the next few minutes. So evidently, the home side capitalized and doubled their lead. This time around, it was Matias Cordoba – he manoeuvred past two players before firing a shot from outside the box to make it 2-0.
Penang could have made it 3-0 five minutes later after a blitz counter-attack, but Rafiuddin initial attempt was blocked by Nasril, before his rebound shot was also tipped away by the Pahang custodian.
The away side began to adopt a conservative approach at this point of the game, to steady their ship and it worked. The tempo of the match slowed down and Pahang had two key chances right after that. Potokar’s header hit the side netting on the 29th minute before Volas’ header was saved comfortably by Sani Anuar Kamsani moments later.
The tempo picked up right after the break as Penang began pushing on the offensive. Faiz Subri’s attempt hit the side netting on the 48th minute, before Pahang’s response through Dalibar Volas’ free kick missed the target. Then came the deciding moment. Salomon Raj started losing his patience on the pitch was eventually sent off on the 60th minute, for a rash challenge on Pachecho.
But what came next was completely unexpected. Faiz Subri produced a breathtaking free-kick attempt from distance and it left Nasril Nourdin absolutely clueless en route to hitting the top right corner in style. For a moment, it brought back vivid memories of Roberto Carlos’s famous banana kick strikes.
One man down and your opponent scores a world-class strike – Pahang players must’ve wanted the game to end at this point. But the torture continued as Penang piled men forward, even introducing new signing Osas Saha into the game. And on the 87th minute, he placed the cherry on the icing by scoring a well-placed header to put Penang 4-0 up.
Pahang did manage to snatch a last-minute consolation goal through Rizua Shafiqi but the Penang party was well underway by then as they secured their first Malaysia Super League win of the season.
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