Player Ratings: Selangor 2 Negeri Sembilan 1

Zulhilmi Zainal

Player Ratings: Selangor 2 Negeri Sembilan 1 image


BY        ZULHILMI ZAINAL       Follow on Twitter


SELANGOR

Khairul Azhan Khalid - 6/10

Starting in his third competitive match this season, the custodian was not troubled too often by the Negeri attackers, but still managed to concede a goal.

Namathevan Arunasalam - 8/10 (Man of the Match)

Had a much better game than what he had against Kuala Lumpur (KL) last weekend. The right back started the move that led to their first goal with his throw in, spotting the space that Amri Yahyah had, before later making an assist himself, for Selangor's second goal of the night.

Kim Do-heon, Negeri Sembilan, Namathevan Arunasalam, Selangor, Malaysia Super League, 28042018

Namathevan (right) playing against Negeri. Photo from Football Malaysia LLP

Willian Pacheco - 6/10

The Brazilian centre back returned to the line-up after two straight suspensions, and proved his importance to the Red Giants by marshalling the young defence line. But his performance was somewhat spoiled by the fact that he allowed himself to be beaten by the much-shorter Negeri forward Thanabalan Nadarajah, who headed in their only goal of the night, which got them right back in the game. 

Amirul Ashraf Ariffin - 6/10

The young defender was still nervous at times, but showed an improved performance as compared to the match against KL last week; his senior team debut.

Kannan Kalaiselvan - 6/10

Negeri forwards are not among the most formidable in the Malaysia Super League for the obvious reasons, and the left defender should have done better to block the cross by Noor Hazrul Mustafa in the 63rd minute, that was then finished by Thanabalan.

Halim Zainal - 7/10

Combined well with Sarkunan Krishnansamy to control the midfield for the hosts.

Sarkunan Krishnansamy - 7/10

The 21-year old midfielder's performance might not have been as flashy as his teammates', but he showed a marked improvement in the heart of defence. He was able to control the tempo and to distribute the ball with composure, and was fit enough to remain on the pitch for the whole 90 minutes.

Amri Yahyah - 8/10 

The veteran forward returned from suspension and had a lively game. Utilised his vision and experience to create Selangor's first goal, and could have scored a few himself had he been more accurate.

Kugan Dhevarajan - 6/10

The weakest Selangor forward of the night again showed the biggest problem with their young players; their poor decision-making in the final third. He had trouble deciding in a timely fashion whether to pass the ball or have a go at the goal himself, and couldn't feed the ball accurately to the other attackers. Missed a sitter early in the second half.

Rufino Segovia - 8/10

Combined well with Amri to score the opener with a header, and smartly dummied the Negeri defence to allow Sean Selvaraj to score their second goal. But in overall the Spanish striker has had better games.

Sean Selvaraj - 8/10

The forward was handed his first ever start for Selangor, and he repaid the faith by scoring his first ever goal for them, against his boyhood club, in the 56th minute. Sean also showed flashes of brilliance in finding space and making deliveries, but exhibited several aspects of his game that need to be worked on such as workrate and fitness. He left the fans wanting for more, but had to be taken off in the 68th minute due to a cramp.

Substitutions:

Shahrul Igwan Samsudin - 6/10

Coming on in the 68th minute for Sean, the midfielder, another former Negeri Sembilan player currently playing for Selangor, did what was asked of him; helping his current team keep their lead over his former club until the final whistle was blown.

Ashmawi Yakin - 6/10

Finally returning to action, the former Negeri Sembilan centre back worked together with Pacheco to ensure their slim lead is kept at a moment when the visitors were pressuring them and doing most of the attacking.

Saiful Ridzuan Selamat - NA

The midfielder came on very late in the match, replacing Rufino.

NEGERI SEMBILAN

Kaharuddin Rahman - 5/10

Selangor did not trouble the Negeri goal too often, but the custodian still managed to concede two goals.

Noor Hazrul Mustafa - 6/10

Should have done better to stop former teammate Sean from scoring against them, but made up for it somewhat with the assist for Thanabalan's goal.

Renars Rode - 5/10

The Latvian defender failed to stop the opposing forwards from scoring from inside his penalty box twice.

Rizal Fahmi Rosid - 5

The centre back had four seasons with Selangor before joining Negeri this season, but could not use his knowledge of them to help his team.

Aizulridzwan Razali - 5

The left back should have done better to stop Namathevan's cross that led to the hosts' second goal of the night.

Khairul Izuan Rosli - 5/10

The right midfielder did not contribute much to his team.

Kim Do-heon - 6.5/10

The former Korea Republic international was among the few Negeri players who played well, marshalling the midfield well with his passes.

Faizal Abu Bakar - 5/10

Helped Kim in the middle of the park, but apart from that did not put in a standout performance.

Khairul Anwar Shahrudin - 5/10

The left midfielder did not contribute much to his team.

Flavio Beck Junior - 5/10

The Brazilian, who played in attack, failed to combine with Nicolás Vélez to produce goals. In the end it took a local striker; Thanabalan to pull one back for the visitors.

Nicolás Vélez - 5/10

The Argentine, who played in attack, failed to combine with Flavio to produce goals. 

Substitutions:

Thanabalan Nadarajah - 7/10

Malaysia U-23 forward Thanabalan is slowly capturing his form in the top league, in what was his fourth overall appearance this season. Against Selangor, he scored just two minutes after coming on in the 61st minute, with his trademark run-into-position in the box which was then finished with a glancing header. Maybe head coach Azraai Khor Abdullah will do his struggling team, the forward and Malaysia a huge favour by utilising Thanabalan more, instead of replacing his misfiring foreign forwards in the coming mid-season transfer window.

Ferris Danial Mat Nasir - NA

The midfielder came on late in the match.

Nasriq Baharom - NA

The former team skipper came on late in the match.

Zulhilmi Zainal