Local strike power
JDT to face Balestier without their Argentinian forwards
PETALING JAYA: Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) will once again bank on their local stars to deliver the goals in their AFC Cup Group F match against Singapore’s Balestier Khalsa FC at the Jalan Besar Stadium tonight.
The Super League champions have excluded injured Argentinian strikers Luciano Figueroa (calf) and Jorge Diaz (back) for the trip across the Causeway.
Only Singaporean midfielder Harris Harun is the confirmed foreign player in the starting line-up. Brazilian centreback Marcos Antonio will undergo a late fitness test to determine his availability for the match.
JDT coach Bojan Hodak fielded an all local line-up with Harris in their Group F opener against East Bengal of India on Feb 24 and they went on to win 4-1.
Hodak is expected to pair Mohd Safee Sali with Mohd Amri Yahyah in attack. Youngster Mohd Amer Saidin is earmarked to marshall the defence with Junior Eldstal if Antonio fails to pass the fitness test.
“We’ve been fielding mostly local players in all our matches this season. The only foreign player playing regularly is Harris. We have some good quality young players and we will use them in the starting line-up,” said Hodak.
For Hodak, he is optimistic of JDT getting another positive result.
JDT lead the group with three points while Balestier Khalsa FC are bottom without a point.
“Our target is to win tomorrow. We want to finish in the top two to reach the last 16. Our aim is to make it to the quarter-finals and take it from there.
“There are no high expectations or pressure on us. We just want to do the best we can,” said the 43-year-old Croatian.