Xisco Muñoz After JDT's Win at Pohang “Our Style Is Clear”

Johor Darul Ta'zim head coach Xisco Muñoz says the high-pressing game that worked so well in Pohang is not a tactic for one night but a core part of how his team plays. He spoke after the Malaysian champions beat the 10-man Pohang Steelers 2-0 in the AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) league stage.

Muñoz and man of the match Guilherme, who scored both goals, faced the media after the final whistle.

The Brazilian forward kept his message simple. He said the plan before kick-off was clear and the players carried it out.

“I am very happy because the team did 100 per cent and we won,” Guilherme said. “We know it is not easy to play here in Korea against a strong team, but today we did our job and we won.”

Asked to compare the J-League, where he previously played, with the K-League, Guilherme said the two are similar in many ways. In his view, Japanese teams like to keep the ball, while Korean sides tend to play longer passes. It was his first time playing in Korea, and he said he saw how strong the opposition were. He described the K-League as physical, with a lot of big players.

Muñoz was asked about the intense pressing his team showed and how he approaches K-League opposition. He said it comes down to the club's identity.

“Our style is clear,” he said. “What we try to do is to play with high pressure. It is important to have a good reaction immediately when we lose the ball, and we work a lot on these things.”

When scouting opponents, Muñoz said he studies how they create chances, including how they arrive in the final third and how often they shoot. He believes JDT are among the best in the competition in those areas, and wants the team to keep the same idea while continuing to grow. He also credited the players for their work on the training ground every day.

The numbers back him up. Match data shows JDT had around 62 per cent of the ball and 20 shots to Pohang's nine, although Pohang played much of the game with 10 men after Jeon Min-gwang's red card.

Korean reporters asked about the number of foreign players in JDT's starting line-up, and whether that helps Malaysian football. Muñoz said he believes Malaysian football is on the rise.

“I think right now Malaysian football is growing up,” he said. “They are at a good level, and they have very good guys.”

He revealed that a 20-year-old prospect in his squad is close to playing in the Champions League. He also said he follows the J-League academy system closely as a reference for improving the situation at home, and that three or four Malaysian players featured in this match. The busy schedule, he explained, sometimes forces rotation, but he is happy with the depth of the squad.

JDT's youth system has been in the headlines recently. Academy product Daniesh Amirruddin, 20, scored twice in the club's 6-0 Shopee Cup ASEAN Club Championship win over PKR Svay Rieng last Friday.

A Korean reporter closed by saying JDT's presence in Asia could help Malaysian football develop, as the club fields talented young Malaysians.

Credit Photo : AFC