Tue, 30 Nov, -0001
Malang: Arema Indonesia qualified for the last 16 of the AFC Cup with a game to spare after a penalty from Argentinean midfielder Gustavo Lopez on the stroke of half-time was enough to secure a 1-0 win over Malaysia’s Selangor on Wednesday.
Lopez kept his cool to slot home from 12 yards in the 45th minute after Muhammad Shahrom had handled Cristian Gonzalez’s goal-bound shot, which also resulted in the Selangor defender receiving a red card.
Arema dominated possession before and after Shahrom’s dismissal with Gonzalez having a headed effort disallowed for offside. But despite enjoying numerical superiority for the entire second half, the Indonesian Super League side were unable to add to the scoreline.
But that mattered little at the end for Arema as they moved up to 10 points in Group F, two behind leaders Hanoi T&T and five ahead of Selangor, who saw their hopes of progression to the knockout stage ended.
“The important thing is we won,” said a relieved Arema coach Suharno after the game.
“Our players are not robots and their schedule has been very heavy so the main thing about today’s game is that we had to win.
“Now that we have qualified for the knockout stage, we will talk to the players about their next target.”
While Arema and Hanoi T&T have secured the two knockout stage berths in Group F, there is still plenty to play for with home advantage in May’s one-off Round of 16 at stake for the group winners against the runners-up from Group H.
Arema travel to Vietnam next week needing to win to move ahead of Hanoi at the top of the table. Should they fail to win, they will finish runners-up face a trip to Hong Kong to face Group H winners Kitchee on May 14 for a place in the quarter-finals.
Selangor, meanwhile, will be left to rue what might have been, especially after an incident in the 25th minute when Fitri Shazwan Raduwan’s header appeared to cross the goalline only for the referee to wave play on.
“Perhaps, if that earlier chance had been a goal, then the pressure would not have been so heavy for us,” said Selangor coach Mehmet Durakovic.
“But the competition is over for us and this is football because we have also lost as a result of a penalty. The match today was not easy because we have to prepare to play again in three days and we have to be able to strike a balance.”