Home made to wait after defeat in Vietnam
Tam Cheong Yan
info@sleague.com
Home United spurned their chance to clinch early progress into the AFC Cup knockout phase when they lost 0-2 to Group H rivals Becamex Binh Duong on Tuesday evening.
The Protectors succumbed to second-half strikes from Kesley Alves and Nguyen Duc Thien, after they had failed to translate their control of the first half into goals.
Following Thai champions Provincial Electric Authority’s 4-1 win over bottom team Club Valencia, Home were pushed into third place in the group, one point behind the other two Southeast Asian outfits.
A win in Singapore over the Thais will still be enough to earn them qualification into the Round of 16, but they will be flying home from Vietnam feeling disappointed not to have found a way past a firm Binh Duong defence.
PN Sivaji’s side welcomed back the returning trio of skipper S. Subramani, midfield engine Shi Jiayi and Brazilian Peres de Oliveira, who slotted into a starting eleven that placed emphasis on strength in midfield.
Subramani’s presence in a sweeper’s role was particularly important, as it freed Valery Hiek and Shahril Alias up to shackle the powerfully-built Alves and Philani Bhekizizwe.
Binh Duong, playing in front of a capacity home crowd, opened tentatively as they took time to come to terms with the absence of the suspended Helio da Silva and Huynh Quang Thanh.
They adopted a more defensive approach as a result, allowing Home to gradually gain control of the first half.
Shi had the most notable chance of the first half, firing a powerful shot from the top of the penalty area that Nguyen The Anh did very well to save.
Apart from that, though, neither team looked like breaking the deadlock before the break, although it did not take long for Home to come close in the second half.
Shahril Ishak had a great opportunity to fire the Singaporeans ahead in a one-on-one with Nguyen, but again the goalkeeper impressed to snuff the danger out.
That missed chance came back to haunt Sivaji’s charges on 61 minutes, when Alves grabbed the first goal of the game.
The Protectors defence had been hesitant in dealing with a cross, and the ball fell to the Brazilian-turned-Vietnamese striker, who sidestepped his marker Shahril Alias before powering the ball beyond the reach of Lionel Lewis.
The goal gave the V-League champions a big lift as they committed more players into attack, thereby making the match a more open affair.
But the visitors could not capitalize as they struggled to break down a resolute Binh Duong backline ably marshalled by Vu Nhu Thanh, which limited the Home players’ attacking efforts to long shots from outside the penalty area.
Binh Duong extended their lead 13 minutes from time, when they played a one-two through the middle of the Home defence before striker Nguyen picked up the ball and put in a good finish for the hosts.
Home nearly reduced the deficit on 82 minutes when Kengne Ludovick and Oliveira combined to send Shahril Ishak through on the left flank, but again the 25-year-old found the Binh Duong goalkeeper equal to his shot.
Those missed chances ended up being the main sore point for Sivaji as he analyzed the match.
“To be fair, Binh Duong defended well, and you would expect that given they had such a big home crowd supporting them,” said the Protectors coach.
“I would admit we couldn’t create the chances and penetrate that backline. Most of our chances, especially in the first half, came from just outside the 18-yard area.
“The fact that we kept the ball well and made them chase for the ball more than we had to do it ourselves meant that we were the more dominant team. But we had our chances and didn’t take them, while they had two and took theirs.”
In spite of the loss, the 57-year-old remained optimistic his team can still secure a place in the last 16 with a win over Provincial Electric Authority in two weeks’ time.
“If we had won tonight, we would not have to think about the last game,” he noted.
“But we are in a good situation in that despite the loss, we still have a chance with a home game against PEA. We’d fancy our chances given this scenario, and we’ll be going for the three points at home.”
Becamex Binh Duong: Nguyen The Anh; Tran Truong Giang, Vu Nhu Thanh, Truong Van Hai; Nguyen Vu Phuong, Phung Cong Minh (Nguyen Duc Thien 52’), Luong Minh Trung (Tran Chi Cong 65’), Chau Phong Hoa; Philani Bhekizizwe, Kesley Alves, Nguyen Anh Duc (Le Duc Tai 78’).
Home United: Lionel Lewis; Rosman Sulaiman, Shahril Alias, S. Subramani, Valery Hiek, Juma’at Jantan; Shi Jiayi, Syed Fadhil (Itimi Dickson 85’), Peres de Oliveira, Shahril Ishak; Kengne Ludovick.
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