| Fadhil Yunus |
DPMM FC head coach Steve Kean has reiterated that his charges can take confidence in the manner of their performance during their previous match against Tampines Rovers FC in the Great Eastern-Hyundai S League at the Our Tampines Hub in Singapore tonight.
The head coach had little complaints of his team’s performance even though the end result was not forthcoming after another less fortuitous night in the Brunei capital.
“What we take from going into this game is we take confidence because I think the manner in which we played in our last home game, if any of the fans weren’t there to see, I’m reiterating how well we played,” said Kean in an interview after a training session at the Jerudong Mini Stadium on Wednesday.
“We had enough chances to score and win so we’re going into this game off the back of a defeat but off the back of another good performance which I think deserved a win.”
DPMM FC’s previous match against Tampines Rovers was a 5-1 win in the group stage of the Singapore League Cup and Kean highlighted that they will go into their fixture full of confidence.
“We’ve played well in our home match the other night. We’ve got good play, we’ve got good rhythm and good things happening in the team,” he said.
“We just have to make sure that if we do get penalties and if we do get chances that come across the box, we have to take them.
“Because if you don’t, it bites you later on in the game and from nowhere we end up losing the game, that there’s no way we should have lost.”
The ‘Gegar Gegar’ men are nevertheless in high spirits of turning their season around despite the defeat against the Eagles.
“You can feel the atmosphere, the confidence, we get (Vincent) Salas back after suspension and our only injury concern we have is Gazale. He has a little bit of a tight groin but we think he is going to be okay to play.”
The Brunei-based outfit have also been boosted with the return of Rafael Ramazotti in training after a six-week absence on the sidelines.
The Brazilian striker has not featured for the 2015 winners since the 9-3 defeat to Home United at the end of May and have been unable to train due to a Grade III rupture on one of his ankle ligament.
Ramazotti will miss the Tampines game but is poised to return in the two-legged quarter-final tie against Home United in the Singapore Cup next month.
DPMM FC could have the possibility of all three imports play as Kean looks to have a full strength side in their bid to win the final piece of silverware for the season.
“We always need our imports to help the local lads so it is good that they are coming back. We’ll probably have two on the pitch and then for the Singapore Cup we probably have the three of them available, so we’re confident of a strong finish.”
Earlier diagnosis of Ramazotti’s injury showed that it was projected six to eight weeks but the prognosis is eight weeks mainly due to the severity of the injury.
“The ligament is totally ruptured. Now he (Ramazotti) is coming back and he’s feeling good. He’s taking part in training so now at the end of the Tampines game we have another two weeks and then he can get his fitness level and stamina up and then he’ll be available again.”
The former Blackburn Rovers manager continued that his charges are creating chances and that defensively they are limiting chances for the opposition.
“Like the other evening (against Geylang), they struck the bar and a shot from nowhere and they have the other chance which they scored. Two chances in a match and you’re hoping to keep a clean sheet from that.”
DPMM FC had chances of their own too with Daud Gazale missing a penalty as well as attacking duo Azwan Ali and Adi Said while staying resolute at the back.
The head coach also indicated that the Geylang’s goal from the visitors’ point of view was met with an element of surprise though they were delighted in the end.
“Even their technical staff at the end of the game were shaking their heads and thought how did they win that game because the chance and the goal came from nowhere.
“But that is where you’ve got to concentrate if the lads upfront are not going to score and it’s not their night for whatever reason, if they’re hitting the post or they’re not putting their chances away, we must make sure that we finish with a zero and at least that’s a point,” the head coach said.
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