MPL Match Day Review: The City Boys on their way back to MSL

It has been incredible for KL so far. After years of struggling in the lower league, they are now top of Malaysia Premier League standing with 10 points after four matches. Who would have thought KL would be the promotion contender this season. There was a time when they seemed like they are not up to it. Negeri Sembilan almost ruined their unbeaten run until Zhafri Yahya scored the equaliser three minutes before the whistle gone. They are leading 2-0 against Sabah after just four minutes through Zhafri again and Casagrande. But The Rhinos managed to get back into the game through Marco Tulio's penalty and Leopold Otong. Helmi Remeli finally netted the winner in 82 minutes. It was a nervy end but a win is a win.

Another MPL team rising to the top is DRB-Hicom. After one win and one defeat, DRB surprised Sabah who played at their sacred home Likas, by defeating them 2-0 through Fakrul Aiman and Arip Amiruddin. But no one would have imagined DRB recording a comfortable win against UiTM. It's a major shock. DRB dominated and scored three goals in the first half through their new signing Philip Lund and a brace from Ivan Babic. Babic completed his hat-trick in the 50th minute. UiTM can only scored through a consolation goal from their top goalscorer, Pavel Purishkin.

JDTII was under scrutiny after losing three games in a row but finally ended the misery as they thrashed the hapless ATM 5-1 at Pasir Gudang while Sabah and ATM are currently losing for four games in a row and though it is still early in the season, if they unable to find their way back to the safety zone, relegation is a certainty.

MPL Match day 2: The conquest of UiTM and KL continues

Photo: Official photo NSTP

Five out of six matches were played in the second matchday of Malaysia Premier League on Monday with the biggest shock came from Sabah who were beaten 4-1 by Kuantan FA. Perlis also fell short after losing 1-0 at home to UiTM despite trashing ATM 6-1 last week.

Kuantan 4-1 Sabah

Sabah took an early through Maxsius Musa in the 38 minute and lead the game until the end of the first half. It wasn't until 20 minutes into the second half that the home side begin their incredible comeback. Dao Bakary equalised through a penalty in 66 minute. For 20 minutes, both team have a hard time trying to find the winner. But then magic happens. In 6 minutes, Kuantan scored 3 goals through Malik Mat Ariff, Wafiy Abdul Ghafar and again by Dao Bakary. It was a great win for Kuantan but a big, big problem for Sabah especially their head coach Vjeran Simunic who aim for promotion this season after failed miserably last season.

Perlis 0-1 UiTM

Perlis are favourites to win the game after recording an emphatic 6-1 win over ATM but were shocked by an early goal by Pavel Purishkin in the 28 minute. The home side trying to get back into the game with two goals disallowed by the referee for offside. A sturdy defence as well as amazing goalkeeping from Pavel Matiash means UiTM took all 3 points away from home. The win also means UiTM is currently top of the league, winning two games and lose none. It's a great start for Raja Isa, who returned after spending for 8 years coaching in Indonesia.

HIGHLIGHT PERLIS FA VS UITM FC
Very good performance from the lions!!
Posted by UITM FC on Monday, 15 February 2016

KL 1-0 JDTII

KL continued their fine form under Ismail Zakaria in the league as they beat JDTII 1-0 through a penalty from Leo Carioca after Zhafri Yahya was brought down by JDTII goalkeeper Fazli Paat in the 66 minute. The win saw them moved second in the standing, sharing the same point with league leaders UiTM FC. Their next game will be in the second round of FA Cup against Malacca.

Malacca 2-1 PKNS

Malacca took an early lead through former Pahang player, R. Surendran who scored with a weak shot in the 21 minute. But PKNS pegged back through Juan Manuel Cobelli in the 50th minute. Nurshamil Abdul Ghani became the hero once again as he scored the winner in the 72 minute, as they moved to fifth place, levelled on point with Kuantan and Negeri Sembilan.

DRB-Hicom 1-3 Negeri Sembilan

This game provide another fairytale. DRB took the lead through Ivan Babic who took the chance of Negeri Sembilan lapse of concentration in the 20th minute. Negeri Sembilan almost scored the equaliser twice but were cleared off the line by the defence in the first half as well as the second half. The away side also have another clear-cut chance but the ball hit the side-netting. Negeri finally found the equaliser through a penalty from Andrew Nabbout in the 80 minute. Three minutes later, Joel Chianese found the net as he converted a cross from the right side to make it 2-1. Alex Smith rounded off the game, picking up a brilliant back pass, rounds off the keeper before scoring with a simple finish in the 89th minute.

15-2-2016 : HIGHTLIGHTS DRB HICOM 1 - 3 NEGERI SEMBILAN
Posted by Persatuan Bolasepak Negeri Sembilan - RASMI on Monday, 15 February 2016

A game between Sime Darby and ATM will be played today.

MPL Match Day 22 Roundup: The end of the season

The final day of MPL season saw Kedah celebrate as they were crowned Malaysia Premier League champions. A hat-trick from Sandro da Silva sealed their promotion to the Super League as they beat DRB-Hicom in emphatic 5-1 victory at Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil.

T-Team unexpectedly lose 2-1 to struggling Kuantan thus missed out the promotion to MSL as Penang beat UiTM 2-0 and claim the final spot to the Super League.

At the end of the table saw Kuala Lumpur relegated to FAM League as they were beaten by NS Matrix 2-1 at Paroi while Kuantan dramatically escaped the drop as they beat the in-form T-Team 2-1 at home.

Kedah return to MSL after three year absence.

Penang return to the top flight after five years of misery.

SPA relegated to FAM League after two years.

Kuala Lumpur relegated to FAM League after spending just one year in MPL.

Full results

DRB-Hicom 1-5 Kedah
UiTM 0-2 Penang
Kuantan 2-1 T-Team
SPA 0-3 PKNS
NS Matrix 2-1 KL
Sabah 1-2 JDTII

MPL 2015 Match Day 22: The final preview

Kedah on the verge of  winning the 2015 MPL title- kedahfansclub.blogspot.com

It has been a great season so far in Malaysia Premier League with plenty of actions and drama. This should be one of the best MPL season since it is rare to see three teams battling for promotion on the final day as well two teams battling to avoid the relegation. Tonight will be the final day of the season. It is an important day especially for Kedah, who will be crowned the league champions if they beat DRB-Hicom at Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil.

Both T-Team and Penang will desperately trying to came out on top as both team shared the league points and it might go down to the point of who will score more and with a better goal difference in the end that will be rewarded with a title promotion.

The title race surely is exciting, but lets not forget the one who are trying to survive from the relegation. After inexplicably lose to Kuantan in the last game, Kuala Lumpur have only one mission left, to win the last game. That is somehow, a daunting task since they will be playing against NS Matrix, a much-composed team than The City Boys. Kuantan is no different, and their task might be even harder since they are facing the promotion chaser T-Team. This might go down to who will concede less thus avoiding the drop in the end.

The favourites to win the title: Kedah

The favourites to get promoted to MSL: T-Team

The favourites to get relegated to FAM League: Kuantan

Full matches

DRB-Hicom v Kedah

Kuantan v T-Team

UiTM v Penang

NS Matrix v KL

Sabah v JDT II

SPA v PKNS

MPL Match Day 21 Roundup- KL fans goes berserk

KL fans were outraged by the results- utusan.com.my

Six matches were played on Tuesday with plenty of actions and shocking results between the top and the bottom of the table. The best match would be the league leaders Kedah wonderful comeback against Sabah.

The Red Hawk were twice trailed as the visitors took the lead through Joel Chianese before Sandro da Silva equalised through a spot kick. Joel Chianese added his second goal of the game, this time through a header past Abdul Hadi. Bang Seung-Hwan equalised again for the home side but they took until the 90th minute of the game to score the winner when Sandro da Silva whipped a free-kick which hit the barrier before the ball lobbed past the goalkeeper and managed to take all three points at home. The final league game for Kedah will be at Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil where they contested DRB-Hicom.

While T-Team trashed bottom place SPA with the scoreline of 7-0. Knowing that they need a large margin of goal difference to at least have the upper hand over their closest promotion rivals Penang, they are not holding back against SPA and managed to gain a high number of goals thanks to Tomislav Busic who scored five in a single match. This has placed T-Team in second place with higher goal difference than Penang.

Penang continued their form despite a nervous 2-1 victory over DRB-Hicom. Two goals from Hilton and Faiz Subri put them third in the table.

The relegation battle ended in such an incredible twist as Kuantan surprisingly beat Kuala Lumpur 2-0 at Merdeka Stadium. Goals from Hazwan Fakrullah and Fabrice Noel put The Seagull level with KL with only goal difference separated them. KL fans were outraged by the results and some of them threw a few flares towards the pitch making the game suspended for five minutes.

Full results

Kedah 3-2 Sabah

T-Team 7-0 SPA

Penang 2-1 DRB-Hicom

PKNS 4-1 UiTM

KL 0-2 Kuantan

JDTII 0-0 NS Matrix

MPL Match Day 21: A quick preview

The MPL title race resumed today with plenty of anticipated clash. With only games remaining, Kedah, Penang and T-Team battled out for the promotion followed by PKNS who have the outside chance.

Kedah v Sabah would be a mouth-watering clash if The Rhinos did not crumbled in the middle of the season thanks to their beloved captain El Haji Diouf. The home side would definitely feel pressured to maintain their league position after losing to NS Matrix previously, a bit of slip up and they might lose the chance. However, looking at the away side form, it should be an easy win for them.

Meanwhile, both Penang and T-Team desperately wanted to pick all three points since both team are sharing the same league points and are probably hoping for their tital rivals to falter.

At the end of the table saw the relegation battle where both KL and Kuantan currently sit at 10th and 11th place respectively met each other today. A win or a draw would be good enough for The City Boys but Kuantan needed a win to at least rival the point against KL.

Full matches

Kedah v Sabah
Penang v DRB-Hicom
T-Team v SPA
PKNS v UiTM
KL v Kuantan
JDTII v NS Matrix

MPL Match Day 20 Roundup

Five games were played yesterday with the exception of SPA v Kuantan who scheduled to play today since Stadium UiTM was used by UiTM FC to play against T-Team. The best match would be the Penang convincing victory over Sabah by a margin of 4-0.

T-Team suffered a blow to their promotion chances when they only managed to draw 2-2 against UiTM. Sadriddin Abdullaev scored both goals for the Titans yet not enough to gain a crucial three points as they gave clear advantage to Penang to level on point. 

The Panther saw the chance and took it with style. The home side proved to strong for Sabah as goals from Elias Sulaiman, Faiz Subri and a brace from Azinee Taib condemned The Rhinos to seven games without a win. This mean Penang are currently in second place, levelled on point with T-Team with only one goal difference.

While the league leaders Kedah suffered a 2-0 defeat to NS Matrix at Paroi. Goals from Forkey Doe and N. Thanabalan ensured The Red Hawk to their only second defeat of the season since March. Regardless of the result, they remain top of the table with only three points separated from Penang and T-Team.

The struggling Kuala Lumpur beaten 2-1 to JDTII and might be in danger if Kuantan managed to win against SPA. The only way to save themselves from relegation is to win the final two games, also involving relegation rival, Kuantan.

Full result

Penang 4-0 Sabah
NS Matrix 2-0 Kedah
UiTM 2-2 T-Team
JDTII 2-1 KL  
DRB-Hicom 1-1 PKNS

Today

SPA v Kuantan

MPL Match Day 20 Preview: A quick preview

Today is the 20th Match Day of the Malaysia Premier League season, with only two games remaining. Kedah pretty much leading the table and almost certain for the coveted league title as well as promotion to the Super League with 42 points so far, four points difference to the second placed, T-Team followed by Penang in third while PKNS have an outside chance for promotion.

Kedah playing away at Paroi tonight against the seventh-placed NS Matrix. The Red Hawk currently unbeaten in 12 matches, while the home side have lost twice in a row so far. Despite the unbeaten record, Kedah will be playing without the services of captain Khairul Helmi Johari and Syazwan Tajudin as both are suspended from the match. The verdict: Due to the recent defeats, Negeri Sembilan might fancy a draw tonight.

Penang will welcome the out-of-form Sabah, desperately for three points today in order to put pressure over the second-placed T-Team. The Panthers who won a narrow 1-0 win over NS Matrix in the previous match and currently unbeaten in 3 matches is expected to continue with the impressive trio Hilton, Azinee Taib and Faiz Subri. 

While Sabah have nothing to chase any more this season after winless in 6 matches that resulted a slip up from first to sixth placed means their title bid is all but over. The Rhinos might even make things easier for the home side as they set to play without all their foreign players with the controversial El Haji Diouf suspended, while Abdoulaye Faye, Joel Chianese and Eamon Zayed all due to injury. The Verdict: Penang all the way

T-Team set to continue their unbeaten run as they visit 9th placed UiTM in Shah Alam. The Titans should have no trouble as they must collect the maximum points in order not to lose their place to the third-placed Penang. The only setback for them is the absence of the star striker Farhod Tadjiev who unable to play due to ACL injury. The Verdict: T-Team to win

Full MPL matches

DRB-Hicom v PKNS

UiTM v T-Team

SPA v Kuantan FA

JDTII v KL

NS Matrix v Kedah

Penang v Sabah