Perak to be boosted by returning players in second leg match against Selangor

It will be a different Perak side which Selangor will face in the Malaysia Cup quarter-finals return leg in Ipoh today as skipper Shahrulnizam Mustafa and striker Akmal Rizal Ahmad Rakhli are set to start after returning from suspension.

 

The duo, along with teammates Nasril Nordin, Syazwan Roslan and Azmeer Yusoff, had their seven-match suspensions lifted by the FA of Malaysia on Monday and came on as substitutes in Perak's 3-1 defeat at the Shah Alam Stadium.

Coach Norizan Bakar is now set to throw caution to the wind and field Shahrulnizam and Akmal from the start as Perak look for the 2-0 win at the Perak Stadium which will send them into the semi-finals against either Negri Sembilan or Felda United.

The five players were originally only expected back if Perak reached the semi-finals but the lifting of the ban could not have been more timely, which came hours before the first leg but not soon enough for Norizan to include them in the starting line up.

 

But it was only when Shahrulnizam and Akmal came off the bench did Perak begin to pose a threat to Selangor and managed to pull a goal back through Failee Ghazli and give them a lifeline.

"We have no choice now but to win. The players must double their effort. What's happened is in the past and there is no use thinking about it.

"It is up to the players to make sure what they want is realised," said Norizan after the first leg.

Norizan is set to restore Shahrulnizam in the centre of midfield and pair Akmal with Failee, the striker who is on loan from Premier League side Universiti Sains Malaysia and has scored five goals in the Malaysia Cup.

Failee, the second highest scorer in the tournament after Kedah's Khyril Muhymeen Zambri (six), has impressed Perak officials so much that his loan stay will be made permanent along with Rafiuddin Roddin, who has been released by Young Tigers A.

This was confirmed by Perak FA president Datuk Zainol Fadzi Paharudin at the association's annual meeting earlier this month.

While Perak welcome back their key players, Selangor coach P. Maniam has to protect his side's lead without the suspended Bunyamin Umar who was sent off in the first leg for collecting two yellow cards.

Maniam, however, does not believe Bunyamin's absence will affect his side with Hardi Jaafar more than capable of filling the defensive midfielder's role.