Eties That Bind
Grilled International progressed into the semifinals of the Hattrick International Sapphire Challenger Cup by defeating H.I. IV.14 side Samba Colonia 2020 5-3 at the colossal Itamar Levin Fridman Stadium - if admittedly completely unexpectedly. The Köln high-fliers were a level above International in all respects, but victory would not be theirs today despite Ole Indrevær giving them the lead in the ninth minute.
Khosrov Danelyan might have tied it back up with a dream dribble ten minutes later, but the real turning point was winger Gordon Butzke's torn hamstring. The reduced threat down the left unlocked
Snæbjörn Sigfússon, who assisted
Mohsen Zeynali before the latter got subbed out for
Waldemar Gołata at the start of the second half.
A sliding-rule pass by
Remond Bergervoet to
Umut Koza made it 3-1 to International in the 54th minute, as
Darshana De Abrew did his part on the other end before letting Oskar Borckmann through. There would then be a huge roar from the Bruneian fans as
Ghanem Ben Mimoun razed former Australian U-20 goalie Osiro Caffrey with a scorching low drive, and
Phua Li Kong added a fifth before Colonia's top performer Egidius Sucha got another back.
That was not enough for International to sweat the final few minutes, and they will now face top division club Lila Crows, after they crushed Swedish H.I. III.16 opponents Hippocampus62 by six goals to two.
Chua Jun Long, who did not need to feature today, dared to believe. "Why not, at this stage?"
Head coach
Sazwan bin Hj Muhd Salleh flew into action immediately after the final whistle, and he would sign additional reinforcements within a few hours; this would be in the form of do-it-all Swiss midfielder
Etienne Binder, who has spent nearly all his career in Zurich with Division Two former Gotthard Cup winners Dynamo Dietikon 09, barring a few weeks as a teenager in Austria with Pixies.
The Dietikon Number Five would cost S$2.9 million, which Sazwan attributed to his soon turning 35 years old. "Etienne remains a top, top star for that, and I think he has a lot to contribute - for a couple more years at a minimum."
Sazwan had reportedly also been considering 33 year-old Israeli Adi Segev of Chilean II.4 club Luchito Mario FC, but Binder's all-round attacking excellence, and lower upfront price, was hard to pass up.
