BEC out to stop East Bengal march
Arya Abhiseka, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After two home teams have failed to stop East Bengal, it's now BEC Tero Sasana of Thailand to try to get in the Indians' march to ensure that the ASEAN club trophy is safe in the region in its inaugural competition.
Being the only contender coming from outside the East Asian region, East Bengal has defied the odds by edging out Persita and Petrokimia Putra, both from Indonesia, en rout to reaching the final match at the Bung Karno stadium here on Saturday.
BEC Tero defeated East Bengal 1-0 in the group phase, but it will be the Saturday's match that counts most as it puts the region's pride at stake.
It is now up to BEC Tero to empower its tactical resources to salvage the image of Southeast Asian soccer by winning the final match. BEC Tero qualified for the final after defeating Perak FC of Malaysia 3-1 while East Bengal dispatched Petrokimia in a gripping penalty shootout, 8-7.
BEC Tero is no doubt one of the best teams, not only in the region, but also in the continent given its achievement as the 2003 Asian Champions Cup finalist.
BEC's head coach Attapol Puspakom looked to fancy their impressive run to the run-up of this tournament and was confident about Saturday's match.
"We are an Asian-class team and we will win the final game," he said.
However, he warned his players over East Bengal's improving performances throughout the tournament.
"I told my players that they might not face the same team they beat in the group match," he said.
Puspakom's counterpart, Subash Bhomwick, seemed to have problem with options of players but said that their previous meeting in the group matches should provide them with reserved tactical ploy at their disposal.
"Debjit Ghosh is injured and still cannot play, while Mahesh Gawli suffered a suspension after receiving a red card in the semifinal," he said.
Ghosh is still suffering the effect of his injury he sustained during the Persita quarterfinal game. The 29-year-old fell unconscious after taking a vicious elbow from Zaenal Arief.
Gawli will be ruled out of the match after collecting the second yellow card for his foul by kicking the ball out of play in protest of the referee's decision in the semifinal match against Petrokimia.
But Bhomwick shrugged off the obstacles, saying: "We have played them before and we have prepared to win the trophy tomorrow."
Bhomwick has been very vocal criticizing the match officiating qualities, giving an impression that the organizers might not want to see a representative from outside the region win the maiden trophy.
"The officiating qualities are should be put into question. If we want to see Asian soccer progress, we should pay attention on this field of the game," he said.