Aloof Vengeance
4-3 Repaid
Arrogancae reversed their defeat by the same scoreline earlier in the season in proceedings that were nearly a mirror image, with the hosts racking up three goals without reply before being pegged back. While Arrogancae may have a second Cup semifinal in as many seasons ahead of them, the sheer depth in their ranks was enough for them to rein in their recent run of three defeats against the Birds.
Having rode a 4-5-1 to great effect against Isle of Flames, who were also put down 4-3 just days ago, Arrogancae returned to a more familiar 3-5-2 for the league with Turkish hitman Azer Selışıl restored to the lineup, but Pan Dawei was again not featured, having aggravated his injury after coming on as a substitute for the national team against Italy. There was still well enough in the tank, though, with former trainee Zhao Jing Wei earning some cheers from the travelling contingent when his name was announced.
The fans were obviously under no obligation to hope that Zhao had a good day, but that was exactly what happened. While he has not particularly distinguished himself in his four previous meetings, Zhao gave glimpses of the potential Grilled had missed out on as he pinged the ball about with authority. Only the presence of Meng 'Aventador' Yunbin beside him prevented him from being awarded the Man of the Match, and Arrogancae's star of the week stamped his mark on the game with an inch-perfect chip over
Dexter Stacey after fifteen minutes.
Zhao then had his turn, after Grilled's defence found themselves pulled to the sides. The former Chicken Wings midfielder, reading his former teammates all too well, found a promising direct route through and jinked his way beyond the attentions of
Lin Jungui before closing in and scoring; that was his first goal against his former club, and he respectfully muted his celebrations somewhat.
For all that, he wasn't about to pull any punches, and once again made a contribution to Arrogancae's third goal. While Italian forward Girolamo Viola made the final run in from the right, Meng was the one who got it to him without any fuss, with Zhao finding Meng under pressure before that.
All indications pointed to Arrogancae going on yet another of their unstoppable rampages, but
Mohd Safri bin Mohd Kassim backed up his words and put a stop to the rot with a majestic header the very next minute to reduce the deficit. Dieter Geisler actually had the better position and even went up for Iten's corner first, but Mohd Safri was in no mood to give way, and shrugged Geisler aside while keeping his eyes fixated on the target.
That timely intervention woke Grilled from their slumbers, and they were the more active side up until half-time.
Tian Yonghang nearly got a second when his close control allowed him a clear shot, but Massimo Cazzulati saved superbly. The ensuing corner was cleared, but not far enough, and big
Seytek Djekshenkulov held his ground to whip the ball past Cazzulati this time.
With the balance dipping precariously in Grilled's favour by the break, it might have gotten dicey for Arrogancae had Meng not made it 4-2. More known for his dribbling than his heading prowess, Meng nevertheless showed that he could nod it with the best as he directed a cross towards the bottom corner from the edge of the six-yard box. While not especially powerful, the precision was such that Stacey could not get to it in time.
That didn't douse Grilled's ambitions completely, and
Chow Ying Lee, who famously hit a hat-trick against Arrogancae a month ago, recaptured some of that aura in several short seconds where motion and grace were terrifyingly combined. The normally unflappable Cazzulati was for once taken aback, and lobbed when he made the resolution to come off his line.
Sensing a possible upset, the Grilled coach made a tactical insertion of fresh legs, with the venerable duo of
Alex Fonseca and
Slavcho Tzonkov off for the younger
Abdul bin Jantan and
Qassem Madaini. However, it was the home side who nearly made the most of this change, with only serendipity and the post keeping Selışıl from making good on his chances.
Grilled had no better luck as they were denied by an Arrogancae team thinking of bigger things now fully concentrated on defence, and the game ended with only a painful-looking Kassim-Kassim collision, for which the Grilled one was booked, worthy of comment.
