Kelantan got their Malaysia Super League campaign off to a disappointing start after playing out a topsy-turvy 0-0 draw against Perak.
With Datuk Vida sitting on the bench, the away side – led by ex-AS Roma man Jonatan Lucca – were expected to turn on the style, but the home side did more than enough to claim a valuable point on the day.
There was a tinge of cautiousness about both sides as the game kicked off – you could understand the reasons for it as well. First game of the season, nobody wants to be opened up easily.
That said, there were sporadic offensive attempts from both sides. Nazirul Naim’s cross into the Kelantan box was cleared away on the 4th minute, before Brendan Gan’s free kick was comfortably saved by Hazirul, merely five minutes later.
But the home side produced a sensational breakaway on the 24th minute, with Khairul Anuar manufacturing an excellent through ball for Vokhid Shodiev. The Uzbek forward effectively latched onto the ball and raced into the Kelantan box, though McKain dropped back in time to tackle and bring Shodiev down. There were minor shouts for a spot-kick, but the referee waved play on, correctly.
The Seladangs started dictating the tempo of the game at this point, with Kelantan struggling to break the Perak defence – led by Thiago Aquino – down. But even then, the main battle took place in the middle of the park, for most parts of the first half. There was very little room for any attack and while it’s due in no small part to both sides keeping it tight at the back, the efficacy of forwards on both sides were rather questionable as well.
Urgency – there was certainly a lot more of it in the second half. Perak, buoyed by their home support, seized initiative and began pushing upfront relentlessly. Elias tested the Kelantan defence with his pacy runs on a couple of occasions, though there was no tangible outcome.
Dramane Traore’s accurate header midway through the second half, almost gifted Kelantan the lead if not for Hafizul incredible save, tipping it above the bar for a corner kick. Minutes later Iiljoski found the back of the net. Brendan Gan’s powerful shot from outside the box was parried away brilliantly by Hafizul and Ilijoski was perfectly position to tap it into the goal. Unfortunately, it was ruled out for offside.
If it wasn’t apparent that the Man of the Match award was inevitably heading towards Hafizul, it was certainly validated on the 86th minute when he pulled off a stunning save to deny Jonatan Lucca’s clinical attempt was outside the box, keeping the score 0-0.
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