Faye apologises to Sabah fans
Published on: Monday, September 07, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: Abdoulaye Faye has apologised to the Sabah Rhinos fans for the team's disappointing end to the season. The former EPL star who left for his home in Manchester on Saturday said he felt he has let the fans down in the team's failed bid to gain promotion. "I am very disappointed and felt really sorry for the fans. You know with me and Dioufy (El Hadji Diouf) in the team at the start of the season, there were many that believed the team will get promotion this year.
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"We started very well and we were at the top of the league at one stage and in some matches, the reaction of the fans were like winning the World Cup."It was very positive for everybody but the last seven or eight games we were like.... I can't explain it. Something was wrong with this team. I really don't know what happened. Everything changed and I am very disappointed with how it ended." He admitted that his absence in the team through injury may have caused the team's downfall.His last game for the team was against DRB Hicom away on July 4 before he injured his knee just before the start against UiTM here three days later."Yes, it may have played a part in that. I am very disappointed with myself as well. I didn't expect myself to be like that but sometimes in life it just happens against your wish."
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He said the team's lack of a quality midfielder was the main reason why the team struggled even in the early season despite some good results."To me it was a big mistake not to engage a good midfielder. Midfield is like a heart beat to a team. We did not have somebody who can give us that.
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"A good midfielder must not only know how to supply passes. Sometimes the strikers need some breathing space and a quality player will control the tempo of the game and know when is the right time to release the ball so that the strikers are in the right frame of mind and position to shoot."His job is also to help the team by breaking up the opponent's attack so that the defence can have ample time to organise at the back."He also defended Diouf after some section of the fans criticised him being too demanding on the ball."There is no doubt that the team this season depended too much on Dioufy and it was a tough task for him to always come back to the midfield to help the players."I know people were complaining about him asking too much of the ball but to be honest, none of the locals have the ability to do what he did. Everybody who knows football can see that the local players can only run fast and can't give quality ball. "Dioufy had to come back to get the ball otherwise Sabah couldn't mount any meaningful attacking moves at all. Without his contribution, Sabah would not have scored all the goals and that is a fact."Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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