StarHub League Cup Semi-Final

Geylang International vs Brunei DPMM

(July 21, Monday, 8.00pm, Jalan Besar Stadium)

Written by: Muhammad Yazid

Geylang International and Brunei DPMM are ready to lock horns in the StarHub League Cup Semi-final round at the Jalan Besar Stadium on Monday evening, after relishing impressive runs each.

Geylang International have won all their League Cup games up to date and finished top in Group D, following famous 2-1 and 4-0 wins over local giants Tampines Rovers and Warriors FC.

They had Albirex Niigata (S) up next in the quarter-final, a game which many would have expected to end in a draw after 90 minutes.

However, the Eagles did not need 30 minutes of extra time nor penalty shootouts to claim victory over the Japanese, as they comfortably brushed them aside in a scoreline of 3-1 after regulation time.

That was Geylang’s first win over Albirex since August 2012, and this latest victory was something which uplifted the players’ confidence.

Coach Jorg Steinebrunner praised his charges’ decision-making skills after the Albirex game and would be urging them to maintain that for the DPMM game as he said, “We knew how to make good decisions, essentially in the last 25 minutes because we needed to be smart and try to save energy.

“We were good in closing things down when possible and going forward to exploit spaces.

“Like I said, my players know when to go forward and when to slow down. There has to be enough numbers behind the ball when two or three players start penetrating.”

The German has been looking forward to the semi’s and mentioned that his players are feeling the same.

“We are very excited because its a semi-final and we are playing Brunei DPMM.

“DPMM is one of the best teams in the league and it is going to be a challenge. We like challenges.”

Steinebrunner is expecting a ‘very tight game’, just like their previous two encounters which ended in draws.

“Both teams cannot beat each other in many areas but we can play against the best team and the players are confident,” he shared.

“We need to work hard because a lot of people would not have given us the chance to come this far. Now, we try to complete the next step and if we succeed and go to the final, that is another step.”

The ex-League Cup winner (with Woodlands Wellington in 2007) then revealed that he would not be relying on his defence for the game.

“I cannot just depend on my defence. Yes we have to be defensively sound but we must also create opportunities to go forward and try to score goals,” he said.

“We are going to play like how we used to play, with the same philosophy. We know the strength of DPMM and we want to negotiate and win the game.

“We want to be in the final and our mind set has to be positive because we have already made it so far. DPMM is good, and we have confidence.”

Their opponents have been also on a high, as they have won four out of their five last games.

They did not start the campaign in the best of ways as they were held by Balestier Khalsa in a 2-2 scoreline, but went on to make a stand following a 3-2 win over Hougang United in the final group game, before winning Woodlands 3-1 in the quarters’.

Geylang International -WWWWL

18/7/14    Geylang International 3-1 Albirex Niigata (S) (StarHub League Cup QF)

15/7/14    Warriors FC 0-4 Geylang International (StarHub League Cup Group B)

7/7/14        Geylang International 2-1 Tampines Rovers (StarHub League Cup Group B)

2/7/14        Geylang International (3) 1-0 (4p) (AET) Balestier Khalsa (RHB Singapore Cup QF 2nd Leg)

28/6/14    Balestier Khalsa 2-1 Geylang International (RHB Singapore Cup QF First Leg)

Brunei DPMM – WWDWW

17/7/14    Brunei DPMM 3-1 Woodlands Wellington (StarHub League Cup QF)

14/7/14    Hougang United 2-3 Brunei DPMM (StarHub League Cup Group D)

11/7/14    Brunei DPMM 2-2 Balestier Khalsa (StarHub League Cup Group D)

4/7/14        Brunei DPMM 2-1 Albirex Niigata (S) (RHB Singapore Cup QF 2nd Leg)

29/6/14    Albirex Niigata (S) 3-4 Brunei DPMM (RHB Singapore Cup QF 1st Leg)