| Fadhil Yunus |
DPMM FC head coach Steve Kean has lavished praise to Home United FC first-choice goalkeeper Hassan Sunny for keeping his side at bay following their 3-1 defeat in the quarter-final first leg of the Singapore Cup at the Jalan Besar Stadium in Singapore on Sunday.
It is the second time that the Singapore international has received plaudits from the former Premier League manager after equally impressing in his side’s 3-1 win at the Hassanal Bolkiah National Stadium in the league earlier this season.
“We know that we can create chances and you know, you are playing against probably – in my opinion – the best goalkeeper in the country, in this competition and in this league. And he has made three saves that has totally changed the complexion of the game,” Kean told the S League.
Kean indicated that Hassan’s goalkeeping abilities marked a significant moment in shifting the momentum in favour of the Protectors.
“The biggest turning point in the game was the double save (by Hassan Sunny). It looked like the second save was in because his feet were on the line and his back was arched and his has hooked (the ball) it out and then they go on to score the goal.”
It will be a tough ask in the return leg to overturn the deficit as Home United have not been in a shortage of goals having scored a staggering total of 15 goals in just three meetings between the pair, with seven of those coming from midfielder Faris Ramli.
In contrast, the goals have dried up for the Gegar Gegar men despite the returning Rafael Ramazotti breaking that drought without scoring a goal after 253 minutes.
“We know that we played well in the first part. We scored. Ramazotti’s header is and in the first half there was a chance where it was saved when it was going into the corner,” added the former Blackburn Rovers manager.
The Great Eastern-Hyundai S League strugglers have it all to do in the second leg with Home United a firm favourite of progressing but head coach Aidil Sharin refused to rest on their laurels just yet.
“We need to think that the game is still 0-0 and win in the second leg,” said Sharin.
The head coach also echoed Kean’s sentiments of his goalkeeper as the catalyst in the decisive moment of the game.
“(On the turning point of the game), it was definitely Hassan’s save. Straightaway you could see the boys reacting to the clearance and getting the goal. That changed the game,” he said.
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