Lacklustre Albirex edge out 10-man Balestier 3-2 to claim first away win of the season
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Albirex Niigata's Shingo Nakano (right) battling against Balestier Khalsa captain Alen Kozar in their Singapore Premier League clash on Sept 28.
ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
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SINGAPORE – Despite being pinned in their own half for most of the first 45 minutes, Albirex Niigata managed to claim their first away win of the season by beating 10-man Balestier Khalsa 3-2 at the Bishan Stadium on Sept 28.
The Singapore Premier League (SPL) defending champions were bolstered by their new signing, Singapore defender Ryhan Stewart, after he failed to find a European club in the summer window.
Albirex coach Keiji Shigetomi said of their first away win: “Of course, it is good to win, but we could have scored more, and I’m not fully satisfied.
“We started strong with an early goal, but conceding two goals from set pieces is disappointing. We could have dominated the game more effectively. We had plenty of chances to finish the match, especially when the opponent was sent off.”
When the sides met in July, the White Swans had replaced four-time Coach of the Year Kazuaki Yoshinaga with Shigetomi.
It took Albirex just five minutes to open the scoring when Stevia Egbus Mikuni fired a long ball to find an unmarked Shingo Nakano, who kept his cool to lob Hafiz Ahmad in the Balestier goal.
Balestier replied four minutes later, when Elijah Lim sent in an inviting cross for Riku Fukashiro to slot past Albirex custodian Hassan Sunny.
There was then confusion in the Albirex box in the 16th minute as a through ball from Ismail Sassi put Kodai Tanaka through on goal.
Hassan then seemingly clipped the forward but no penalty was given, much to the dismay of the home crowd.
Balestier looked the better of the two teams heading into the break, but both sides struggled to create any clear chances.
In the 43rd minute, a cross from Darren Teh found Sassi, whose header forced a smart reaction save by Hassan to keep the sides level.
Two minutes later, the White Swans regained their lead against the run of play as a curling corner from Yojiro Takahagi was deflected into the net by Jordan Emaviwe.
In the 58th minute, the Tigers were reduced to 10 men as Sassi received his marching orders after tripping Stewart on the counter.
Albirex then had the best chance to extend their lead three minutes later as Nakano found himself in space at the far post, but missed the open net.
He made up for his error in the 75th minute, latching onto a pass from Yohei Otake to slot a shot past Hafiz.
Emaviwe made it a nervy finish for Albirex as he scored two minutes into added time to make it 3-2.
Albirex forward Nakano, 19, said: “I could have scored more, but I didn’t. I had two big chances but missed.
“This win is very big because we have not won away from home this season and actually when they scored to make it 3-2, we were (nervous), and we knew that we had to calm down the play and the result was ours.”
Balestier coach Peter de Roo lamented his side’s lack of composure. The Dutchman said: “A frustrating night in the office. This is now the third game in a row where, just based on pure football, we should just win the game.
“Things go against you, you start rushing, you start getting a little bit frustrated, and that’s where you need to stay calm in your head.”
Tigers captain Alen Kozar echoed his coach’s sentiments, adding: “We have been conceding easy goals in the last three games and we always need to fight to come back.
“We always come back but they scored before half-time. We started the second-half okay, kept pushing, kept possession and created chances but we got the red card and we opened up and conceded the third goal.”
In the other match at Jurong East Stadium, Tanjong Pagar were thrashed 7-2 by Geylang International, thanks to a hat-trick from SPL leading scorer Tomoyuki Doi and goals from Ryoya Taniguchi, Naqiuddin Eunos, Shakir Hamzah and Vincent Bezecourt. The Jaguars replied with goals from Tomoki Wada and Akram Azman.
Meanwhile, SPL leaders Lion City Sailors will be eyeing revenge for the 5-0 thrashing by BG Tampines Rovers
Analysis
Despite their superior possession, Balestier lacked conviction in the final third, creating chances but failing to convert.
Their defensive frailty is also a concern, as the Tigers have conceded 43 goals in 16 games this season. Only the Young Lions (49) and Tanjong Pagar (57) have let in more in the nine-team SPL.
