KOTA KINABALU: Justin Ganai reminds his players not to take winless Kuala Lumpur lightly when they meet in a Super League tie at 8:15pm at the Likas Stadium tonight.
He insisted that there is no room to underestimate any team, Kuala Lumpur included, at a time when they are also hungry for victory.
The Sabah Head Coach said on paper, the expectations are high of them notching their second win of the season, but on the other hand, football is a game that anything can happen.
“We need to play with more patience in searching for the victory. In our previous games, we seemed to rush things a little too much, and at the end we put ourselves under pressure and failed to achieve our goals.
“I hope tomorrow (tonight), the players will be patient enough in our quest to win the tie. They must stick to the game plan and do it as a team. They must help each other and if they can do that, I’m optimistic of getting a positive result,” Justin said, when met at the Likas Stadium yesterday.
“Against Kelantan, we played well and fought hard, and tomorrow, I expect them to do the same and fight their hearts out until the final whistle.
“We just cannot afford to take them lightly because in football, anything can happen. So we have to be ready and try to play our best game,” said Justin.
Justin also hinted on making a tactical change after losing his midfielder Brendan Gan to suspension.
The Aussie signing was given the marching orders for second yellow card offence in the two-all draw against Kedah last week, and will serve his one-match automatic suspension in tonight’s game.
While reluctant to reveal his plan, Justin said, he has several options to play his cards and has two or three players, who could fill in the vacuum left by Gan.
But the good news for Justin is Gan’s countryman Michael Baird will be available for options and looks set to make it back into the first team after serving his one-match suspension.
The striker, who has been one of the most consistent among his teammates, will spearhead the attack with Bobby Gonzales his likely partner, unless Justin has a change of heart and opts for Leopold Alfonso Otong.
Justin might give Leopold the chance to start with Michael after seeing the youngster hitting the goalpost in the draw with Kelantan after coming in late on while against Kedah, he saw his effort hit the crossbar.
Kuala Lumpur is the only side in the 14-team league that has yet to win their matches. Their only point was from the one-all draw against Selangor PKNS and they lost the rest of their remaining six battles.
The disastrous run saw Kuala Lumpur, who are also known as the Hawks, rooted at the bottom of the standings.
