Kota Kinabalu: Sabah FC will not have three key players when they take on Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) FC in the Super League clash at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium tomorrow (Saturday).
Head coach Martin Stano said Gabriel Peres, Telmo Castanheira and Daniel Ting will be missing from the squad as they are all suspended for the match due to card offences they picked up in the previous matches.
Despite the setback, the Slovakian is hoping his players can build on their nine-match unbeaten streak in all competitions to spring a surprise against the runaway leaders at their home turf.
“No doubt our preparation is severely affected by the suspension, but we have drawn up a very thorough “game plan” and we will ensure that the starting line-up will be able to give JDT a tough competition.
“It is of course going to be a tall order against the best team in the Super League.
“The most important thing for me is to make sure that the players can maintain the momentum and maximise their performance.
“In order for us to maintain our winning streak, the player must be fully focused to carry out their duties well and hopefully to deliver the points,” he said on Thursday.
He added that there may be some small alteration in the team ahead of the tie as the result of the missing trio.
“We still have a few training sessions before the actual match on Saturday. So maybe we will make some positional adjustments to suit our strategy and be ready to surprise them.”
He also stressed that the team will not be distracted by the Malaysia Cup semi-final first leg tie against Pahang scheduled on January 18 at Likas Stadium.
“Sabah FC consider the Super League and Malaysia Cup matches as equally important. We will take it one match at a time and will strive to achieve good results in both competitions.
“But right now, our focus is entirely on the match against JDT in the Super League.”
