Phua Goes Golden
Mamani Buzz
Tian Yonghang would not have his players relax themselves too much as he signed them up for the September Tournament, with the assurance that the competition would not be as absurd as with the Golden Trophy. Still, there would be plenty of history with their Belgian Division Five opponents FC GOUDENPLOEG, who have the proud distinction of being three-time champions of the Eerste Klasse, all in a glorious three-season stretch. They have not quite recaptured those heights in the long years since then, however, and the Birds would prevail 5-3 here - not exactly being at their peak themselves.
FC GOUDENPLOEG do have high hopes for the future, from how they were led out by confident 22 year-old playmaker Bientse Wilstra, who took the centre together with Lolke Pijpstra and tall Italian Number Ten, Erik Mastai. This would then be a like-for-like matchup against the Birds' own youth, as
Chad Thach,
Chia Kwang Tse and
Mohd Marzuki Khairul took to the field against them. Cătălin-Radu Nedelea and Yaro Vander Sleyen fulfilled striking duties for the Belgians, in a 3-5-2 clearly divided between attacking and defending units.
They would be two behind after three minutes, to the consternation of latecomers, as Grilled blitzed to great effect.
Phua Ming Xin might have been criticized for a lack of presence when he first came over to the Birds, but few would level that accusation at him nowadays; Phua would exhibit a remarkable poise as he weighed Luciano Martín Escasany's stance on approaching the GOUDENPLOEG box... before lifting a lob around him and over Turkish goalkeeper Saner Özkılıç, with nary any warning.
That was a goal of such quality that
Joe Reece's comparatively mundane contribution on Grilled's next possession would draw rather flat applause in comparison, not that the Welshman seemed to mind too much. GOUDENPLOEG might have been reeling a bit there, but Wilstra stabilized the match with some deliberate slow passing, showing an old head on his shoulders. They need not have worried too much, as Escasany would have his turn when Pablo Fabian Mamani tricked his way down the right, and slid it across in the tenth minute for 2-1.
It was the Birds' turn to take their time, and the rest of the first half would be a lot less eventful, save perhaps for
Enrique Baena's madcap interception and conversion off a loose throw-out by Özkılıç, six minutes after Escasany's goal. The spectators would then have to wait until the 34th minute for some real action, namely Özkılıç blocking a
Joe Reece hammerstrike from close. That had the goalie down for some seconds, and Yaro Vander Sleyen would be booked trying to buy a breather for him to recover.
As it happened, Sleyen need not have bothered with the Grilled players willing to put it out anyway, and the half would end on reasonably good terms.
Chad Thach would not return for the second one as
Gandhik Chitre was given a chance, and the game would build towards a boil in the 60th minute, which first had
Mohd Marzuki Khairul crash inside for Grilled's fourth. GOUDENPLOEG came on very strong in their response, and after the Birds defence barely headed off Lolke Pijpstra's wondrous dribble, they had no recourse when Šime Malenica cut their left side to shreds.
That was 4-2, and after Chia too left for
Lim An Keng, it would get a lot more concerning for the Birds, as they conceded a third. The Belgians had been giving them quite a bit of trouble now, what with their forwards starting to get one over Aw and Hutter. Grilled would respond by pulling a few more bodies back, but none of that availed them as Mamani weaved this way and that in the crowded six-yard area, before finding the narrowest of gaps between Aw's legs.
The Birds were undeniably disorganized now, and it could have gotten very bad, had Phua not turned the momentum around from nothing. Perhaps aware of how GOUDENPLOEG were beginning to assert dominance, Marzuki would take it upon himself to attempt a direct run on their goal to restore Grilled's spirit, a mission that was adopted by Phua without missing a bit, once he got tackled. There didn't seem much space to work with, but Phua would somehow guide it past the last man with calculated touch, and the finish would match that!
GOUDENPLOEG were done after this, and they were left chasing after
Chan Ze Han, after the Grilled legend entered for
Joe Reece with about five minutes remaining. A Chan without a need to pace himself can be quite the terror, as they realized when he flitted past his man to curl one onto the post, right before injury time. A disappointment for the Number Eleven, but immaterial in the end.
