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| FIXTURE HISTORY |
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| Season 58 | W | 8 - 2 | Tournament (Playoffs) | | Season 55 | W | 6 - 4 | Tournament (Group Phase) |
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All For Naught
Uster Off
FC Allgäu Blaichach came perhaps the closest they had to defeating Grilled, but it lasted for little more than a minute, and having to operate with ten men all but put paid to their ambitions. Despite that, they looked good for a point as they ably held the Birds' depredations off until the very end, when
Tian Yonghang finally put the match beyond them.
The two previous meetings in this tournament had seen Blaichach fall off by fairly wide margins, but high turnover meant that their starting lineup had little cause to be hobbled by those memories. Save for defender Kay Grünwald, none remained from their XI from three seasons ago, while the corresponding number for Grilled was eight of eleven.
Blaichach certainly weren't shy about taking the game to Grilled, with head coach Siegfried Wille-Wagner apparently targeting poaching a one-goal lead to defend, and that was exactly what they achieved after but three minutes. An unconvincing foray was halted well short of the tournament organizers' penalty area, and captain Jakob Lütkemeier smartly brought his forwards into play, before squaring it to the unmarked Bodo Gödert.
Their exultation was over almost as soon as it began, sadly, as they were undone by a completely baffling backpass from Lui Loft, under no pressure at all. It fell well short of goalie Gregor Reiskirchen, and was almost to the feet of
Rinor Isufi, who needed no second invitation.
If this was disappointing for Blaichach, they didn't show it, as they reverted to shutting up shop effectively. Swiss winger Milaim Uster was especially proactive in his tackles - probably too much so, in fact - as he badgered
Low Aik Jia once too often in the thirteenth minute, earning him his first yellow. 25 minutes in, Uster then went in hard on a turning
Mohd Safri bin Mohd Kassim, his ticket out of the game.
Without a ready wide outlet, Blaichach's ability to find more goals waned precipitously, and they concentrated on staying in it. This was something that they were pretty great at, and apart from one of
Low Aik Jia's electric surges that Reiskirchen ultimately saved, they kept Grilled from getting any shots on goal up to half-time.
They had clearly abandoned any plans to end it in regular time when they lined up for the second half, with Kevin Tischenreuth all but left to fend for himself up top, while his teammates clustered deep.
Tian Yonghang would quickly discover just how determined Blaichach were to maintain the status quo, when he got mobbed by three defenders, having barely chested down a high ball.
Rinor Isufi was likewise shaken off midway through his strike in the 54th minute, and assistant coach Luis Alcántara soon saw that other measures had to be taken.
Low Aik Jia had been frustrated by a lack of space in which to operate, and his replacement with the more patient and pass-happy
Neeraj Muthyala was sensible in that regard.
Improvement was slow to arrive, however, and it increasingly appeared that Blaichach would get their draw, as they suffocated Grilled's advances relentlessly. Grünwald relished his role with gusto, and ensured that the opposing forwards never quite managed to hang on to the ball. This was to the extent that
Wong Ping Shun was visibly dismayed when his 70th minute free-kick spun wide, knowing just how important that opportunity was.
The Birds were barely even trying, when
Tian Yonghang did one of his escape acts. As had been the case for basically the entire match, Christian Theuerwekl was stuck to him when
Ang Leong Kum rolled a no-frills pass at him, but Tian turned nothing into something with frightening alacrity. Leaning way over to one side, he teed the ball up, before volleying it into the tiny gap between Reiskirchen and his near post.
It was a strike fit for the ages, and also for the signal for
Leong Wan Kang to come on and run his socks off. Ang would then make sure of the win with his point-blank prod home from
Wong Ping Shun's hammered indirect free-kick, with
Rashid bin Ahmad's late sub running down the seconds.
