E. Bengal seeks another host shock
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After snuffing out Persita's ambitions, Kingfisher East Bengal is looking for another victory when it faces the last remaining Indonesian team, Petrokimia Putra, in the semifinals of the LG Cup ASEAN Club Championship here on Thursday.
East Bengal's coach Subash Bhowmick said during a media conference here on Wednesday that they would have to perform better than ever because the next opponent is also a home team.
Bhowmick cautioned his players about the loud support from tens of thousands of Indonesian fans, who are expected to flock to Bung Karno stadium in Central Jakarta.
"This is a very crucial game for us," he said according to Antara.
The Petrokimia-Kingfisher match will be played at 3:30 p.m., followed by the other semifinal match between BEC Tero Sasana of Thailand and Perak FC of Malaysia.
After its 2-1 defeat of Persita in the quarterfinals, East Bengal has been touted as the favorite to beat Petrokimia.
However, Bhowmick, who admitted to having little knowledge of Petrokimia, said he was not flattered by the praise, warning the players not to be overconfident.
He said they may have predicted to win but, he added, it would the game that would count.
Petrokimia's coach Alexander Sikov conceded that East Bengal had better talent, but he said they were not by any means overawed by their opponents.
"We won't sit back against them. The players are in good shape, physically and mentally. We've had enough rest days," Sikov said, adding that he would rate their chance at fifty- fifty.
Sikov said he was worried particularly about the attack front, with only Rivaldo and Jainal Ikhwan as the strikers.
He hoped that the unbalanced front line would be compensated by good communication in the midfield, which is marshaled by Danilo Fernando, Agus Indra, Gatot Indra and Yance Katehokang.
Recollecting their quarterfinal match against the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) FC, Sikov warned the players not to have another lackluster run at the start, which resulted in them trailing 0-2 before recovering for a 3-2 win.
"They must attack from the start with persistence, because they are up against a better team," the Moldovan coach said of his team.
Team manager Imam Supardi appealed for support not only from Ultrasmania, the nickname of the Gresik-based club's fans, but also from all Indonesians, saying that it would be the nation's pride at stake.
Meanwhile, Perak FC will take on their Thai opponents without their main players Indra Putra Mahyuddin and K. Nanthankumar, who have been called back home for national duty.
The Malaysian national team is involved in the FA Premier League Asia Cup with English premier clubs: Newcastle United, Chelsea and Birmingham.