Weary Bengaluru prepare to face old foe Johor Darul Tazim in crucial AFC Cup game
LAST SEASON, on a cold night at the Malaysian city of Johor Bahru, Bengaluru FC went up against a strong Johor Darul Ta'zim side in the AFC Champions League qualifiers. The match saw a hard-fought battle as the then I-League champions ended the 90 minutes tied 1-1 thanks to a goal by Eugeneson Lyngdoh. The home team came through with a match-winning goal in extra time.
One year later, the old boys are going at it again. This time, Bengaluru FC will have the home advantage. But even as the loyalists are hard at work behind the scenes to put on a memorable gallery show at the season's first continental home game, Westwood can't seem to shake off the bad vibes in the lead-up to it.
BFC started their campaign in the AFC Cup with a 2-1 loss to Lao Toyota away. A loss against Johor will land them in a bad spot at the AFC Cup Group H points table. But Johor, team on a 6-match win streak that hasn't lost a match since 2nd February, would have been a mouthful for a full-strength BFC side; let alone the injury-ridden squad Westwood has at his disposal.
When Robin Singh went out with an injury, the competent attacking combination that gave BFC such an edge over other I-League clubs was gone. But at a time like this it was C.K. Vineeth who rose to partner up front with Kim Song-yong and Sunil Chhetri. But Vineeth is likely to miss this game with an injury.
In the midfield, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, one of the most dependable players in the team, is yet to recover from the injury he sustained at Cooperage. In the defense, Curtis Osano is also out with an injury. It suffices to say that the team that will take to the pitch tonight at Kanteerava is far from the squad that Westwood would like to field. But the head coach isn't short of optimism,
"Johor Darul Ta'zim are a good side but they're not unbeatable. We aren't going into this game to make up the numbers but to give a good account of ourselves. We are playing a decent team from Asia, and we believe we are one as well."
But most decent teams from Asia don't have to play 5 matches in 14 days like BFC have just done. Within that time they have travelled to Laos, Shillong and Goa and back. The players are tired; and the strength of the opposition will not allow Westwood to rest too many players.
Johor have won the Malaysian Super League last two seasons in a row. Their captain Safiq Rahim sits at the top of the highest scorer list in AFC Cup with 3 strikes to his name. Argentinian striker Pereyra Diaz has also scored 3 goals in 4 appearances so far. Their defense features Marcos Antonio, a Brazilian who has played for clubs like Auxerre and FC Nuremberg in the past. They have entered the AFC Cup as title contenders, and made a flying start to their campaign by beating Ayeyawady United 8-1 in their first match. They're the favourites to top the group.
That's why pragmatism will have to come into play for Ashley Westwood tonight. It's a tight group and Bengaluru FC have already some ground to make up; but grinding out a draw won't be too bad against a team like this. Circumstances have combined to land BFC in a bad position which they will have enough time to recover from once the international break kicks in.
If the defenders put in a big shift tonight and prevent a defeat, the Blues can plot a comeback in the latter half of the group stage.
