Point Of Approval
Timely Boost
While they gave Dream Seals their first league draw of the season, the Birds were not too hung up over it, given their new objective. It was not as if the hosts didn't earn it either, as they toiled endlessly on this rainy day to give their supporters a reason to carry on.
It was evident that Grilled were pressing their luck on this one, from the teamsheet that they submitted -
Zhao Jing Wei was out, of course, but on top of that,
Zhu Changchun was placed on the bench. In his absence,
Abdul bin Jantan moved inside to partner
Gene Filippone, with the flanks staffed by the odd couple of
Ling Fuquan and
Gleb Dorogan.
An odd-looking midfield indeed, and with the unseasonal rainfall that blanketed Dreams Arena, it was too much to expect any semblance of smooth passing from it. Seals' stable selection were at least functional if not quite stylish in contrast, and quickly forgot the 0-5 hiding of last week in bossing the Birds' makeshift engine room.
24 minutes in, Bienvenido Mir López took defensive midfielder
Gene Filippone on a runabout. The Swiss newcomer had been a hit since his arrival last month, but the succession of matches may be taking a toll, seeing as how he battled to keep up. López spotted fellow midfield man Menke Boost streaming in, and sent a great pass right in front of him for the lead.
Sensing weakness, Seals didn't let up, with target man Song Hui Kian eagerly throwing his weight about against
Qassem Madaini. The Birds could not get their rhythm going, and it was only
Tian Yonghang's individual brillance that produced a shot against the crossbar in the 38th.
Gleb Dorogan pounced on the rebound, but this time Marek Sedlák was prepared.
For that, it was the Birds who were more fortunate not to go further behind, as Dream Seals kept up their regular assaults at the visiting end. The Grilled backline was thoroughly confused when Song knocked it to the right, and Polish winger Kazimierz Kurz would have doubled their lead, were it not for
Wong Tian Han's agility.
The rain continued pouring through the interval as the pitch became increasingly waterlogged, and there would be no question of snappy short passing in the second half, which suited the leading Seals just fine. Stanca managed to wait through ten more minutes of fruitless splashing about, before sending in the calvary -
Zhu Changchun on,
Gleb Dorogan off.
Having abandoned the plan to rest Zhu for midweek, it was now imperative for Grilled to make this risk worthwhile, but circumstances meant that Seals were coping rather comfortably. It was only when they went for a second in the 73rd minute, that the Birds got the opening they required.
Song was again the the thick of things, as he enjoyed regular service from his wingers. This time, he held it up against
Rashid bin Ahmad, before releasing the dynamic López with a well-disguised tap-on. The move should have worked as López struck it very sweetly - but only onto the post.
At this, the game burst into a flurry of action with Madaini and Julen Pizarro converging onto the rebound, which had stopped just in front of goal, and it was only after a few heartstopping seconds that Madaini managed to shift it wide. Rashid helped it on without a second thought, and Rafael Endueñas barely misjudged his header, to let Ling through on the right.
It was Grilled's first all-out attack of the game, and bodies flew everywhere as the participants fought to get into position. The referee could probably have stopped play several times over had he been of a mind to, but the curtain of rain made judgement tricky, and this sequence ended only after the substitute Zhu bundled it in.
The Seals players protested the goal immediately, but after consultation with the linesman, referee Cristoph Stöbel would instead book Kurz for his tackle on
Abdul bin Jantan in the build-up, to much disapproval from the stands. It soon became evident that bin Jantan was not playacting, though, and Stanca had to make his second change, taking him off for
Remco van der Ban.
It was hard to tell whether the newcomer was out of his depth, since by this time the game had degenerated into more-or-less random sloshing about, with skill losing out to a mixture of leg strength and sheer perseverance. As usual,
Woon Shun An distinguished himself in the mudbath, but it would be Seals who nearly took it all, with a dangerously-close volley from Kurz.
