JDT AIM TO TAKE DOWN SELANGOR IN MALAYSIA CUP FUTSAL FINAL

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) will take on Selangor in the Malaysia Cup futsal final tomorrow aiming to make amends for last year's disappointing runners-up finish.

JDT futsal team head coach Juan Antonio Miguel Garcoa said he is bent on making sure they do not end up being runners-up for a second year running, having lost 3-1 in a penalty shootout to Pahang Rangers after both teams were tied 4-4 in regulation time in last year's final.

He said that winning the trophy for the first time would be the ideal conclusion for the Southern Tigers as it would mean achieving the double in the domestic futsal scene, having already secured the 2024 Malaysia Premier Futsal League (MPFL) Division 1 championship in July.

“JDT are happy to have reached the final (Malaysia Cup Futsal). We are here not to play, but to win.

“I am confident of my team's chances in the final. At the same time, I have to say that we respect Selangor because they are also a good team,” he told a pre-match press conference here today.

JDT had advanced to the 2024 Malaysia Cup Futsal final after defeating Kuala Lumpur City 9-2 on aggregate while Selangor progressed to the final by seeing off defending champions Pahang Rangers 9-7.

Selangor coach Edgar Eder Baldasso is quietly confident of his team's chances of ending their string of third-place finishes in several previous tournaments.

He, however, was quick to acknowledge that his men face a tricky task ahead as JDT are a strong team and the favourites to lift the Cup.

“JDT are a strong team because they are the MPFL champions. They also have good foreign players.

“I will say that tomorrow's game will be 50-50. Although JDT are the favourites, we still have the potential (to cause an upset) because our game is also strong,” he said.

-- BERNAMA