Fine comeback: Red Giants’ Alvin Fortes made a welcome return to the Selangor line-up against JDT on Sunday. — Bernama
PETALING JAYA: The defeat against Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) was painful for Selangor but the return of several key injured players to the team made up for the disappointment.
Nidzam knows that losing 0-3 at at the Petaling Jaya City Council Stadium on Sunday was disappointing.
“I think the result is not good, especially to lose 0-3 at home. Some things need to be improved. Each year, we aim for improvement, even if that’s just 10 percent, that’s good,” said Nidzam.
“In previous seasons, we have been behind the league leaders by 15 to 20 points. I don’t know how things will be this season but we want to close the gap.
“We are not happy with the loss. If anyone is happy with losing, then there is something wrong,” he said.
Selangor are currently in second place with 26 points, while 10-time Super League winners JDT are at the top with 34 points.
Nidzam added that although the team have aspirations to win every match, reality tends to have different plans.
“We always want to win, it’s always about the winning culture, but it didn’t happen against JDT.
“We need to bounce back better and higher,” he said.
However, Nidzam was excitement seeing that captain Safuwan Baharuddin and Mukhairi Ajmal making their return to the pitch after being out due to injuries.
“Both players have shown good physical capabilities this past week but we took a risk to play them even though they could have aggravated the injuries more,” said Nidzam.
“Alvin Fortes was also injured as he missed the AFC Champions League Two (ACL2) fixture against Jeonbuk, but we took a risk and played him too.
However, Selangor are still without the services of Jordanian midfielder Noor Al-Rawabdeh, who is out for an extended period of time after picking up an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in his right knee.
The Red Giants will face Kedah next in their Super League campaign on Saturday, followed by a trip to South Korea to face Jeonbuk in the AFC Champions on Nov 7.
