Matchweek 4 of the 2022/23 Liga 1 Indonesia season kicks-off on Friday with Borneo Samarinda visiting early strugglers Persik Kediri at the Brawijaya Stadium. Despite going down 1-0 deep into the second half, an immediate comeback and a late goal completed the comeback for Borneo, with the Pesut Etam winning 2-1 at the end of the day.
After a relatively cagey first half, Persik took the lead in the 64th minute after Agil Munawar swung in a cross from the left flank that was struck sweetly by Yusuf Meliana, eliciting cheers from Persik fans flocking the stadium.
But only three minutes later parity was restored after Matheus Pato seized a Javlon Guseynov header to plunder home past Dikri Yusron in the Persik goal.
Former Daejeon Hana Citizen striker Pato was on fire in Kediri, as he completed his brace in the 77th minute with a sublime free-kick that left Dikri utterly defenseless. 2-1 to Borneo, and the scoreline remained that way at full-time.
A third win in four games meant that Borneo are sitting nicely in the top half of the Liga 1 table, while Persik remained rooted in the relegation zone with only one point to their name. A third defeat in four games meant that the pressure was on head coach Javier Roca to improve things, should he did not wish to share the fate of Persib Bandung head coach Robert Rene Alberts who resigned after three games after a dismal campaign of his own.
Saturday will see three Matchweek 4 games taking place, with a leaderless Persib hosting PSIS Semarang, defending champions Bali United welcoming Arema FC to the Kapten I Wayan Dipta Stadium, while PSS Sleman host PS Barito Putera at the Maguwoharjo.