Steven Danis
Football Tribe Indonesia
A week after the first leg of the Piala Indonesia semi-finals were held, Persija Jakarta and PSM Makassar now travel away having already collected precious wins, and now must focus to prevent Borneo FC and Madura United from scoring any goals that would allow them to steal their place in the final.
Persija are already in a good mood as they collected two consecutive wins at home, but there’s a challenge in their away game. In a first leg, they won 2-1 but now they will play in Segiri stadium, home of Borneo FC, in front of thousands of militant supporters Pusamania.
Even a single goal would be enough to take Pesut Etam through to the final on the away goals rule, if they can keep a clean sheet. Persija are also without their captain and main goalkeeper Andritany Ardhiyasa who was injured during the first leg.
However, there is a little hope as Macan Kemayoran earned a 1-2 win at the Segiri Stadium last season in a league match.
Meanwhile, PSM faces a real challenge as they play Madura United three times in a row. Last Thursday the two sides met in a league match and PSM lost 2-0 in Gelora Pamekasan stadium after Juku Eja managed a 1-0 win at home in the first leg of the cup.
Their lead will be under assault by the hosts, who are a very attacking team with an all-star attacking lineup containing Beto Goncalves, Aleksandar Rakitic and Andik Vermanysah. However, Madura first-choice goalkeeper Muhammad Ridho was injured on the latest league game against PSM, and their defensive frailty could provide an outlet for PSM to reach the final.
Both matches hang in the balance, and the Piala Indonesia finalists are soon to be decided with the games which are set to be played today and tomorrow.