Kota Kinabalu: The 8-2 thrashing by Thailand top club Buriram United in the Asean Charity Shield match at the Rainbow Stadium in Pattani on Sunday evening was a good session for Sabah FC, said assistant coach Alto Linus.
He said the result may not be what they had expected but it served as a good learning lesson for the players as they prepared for the new season.
“The result was definitely not what was expected. Despite the loss, the match was an important learning ground for the team as we had just started pre-season training less than a month ago.
“It allowed us to assess the team performance as a whole against one of the best clubs in Southeast Asia and it certainly exposed several weaknesses that need to be improved immediately, especially in defence and transition of play,” he said.
He admitted that the players’ fitness level is still not at its optimum level with only one pre-season match against Kasuka FC under their belt before taking on the Thai champion.
“I believe we need at least three to four more friendlies before we are truly ready for the start of the Super League.”
On the individual performance, he praised some of the youngsters who were promoted from the under-23 squad.
“These players have shown maturity and commitment when given the opportunity to play alongside senior players.
“As for the three new import players (Dean Pelekanos, Dane Ingham and Ajdin Mujagic), who have just joined the team this season, I am satisfied with their performance, but they need to further improve their fitness level,” he added.
He also said skipper Dominic Tan and Gabriel Peres, who did not feature in the starting line-up on Sunday should be fully recovered from their injuries within a week.
Meanwhile, the team are scheduled to play three or more warm-up matches before the season opener against Melaka FC at Likas Stadium on August 30.
