Kuching City FC v Gangwon FC: a week on from 1-0, Kuching need goals of their own

Kuching City FC meet Gangwon FC for the second time in a week, at Stadium Taha Ariffin on 5 November, in the fourth round of group matches in the AFC Champions League Two.

The first meeting, in Gangneung on 29 October, went to Gangwon FC by a single goal. Choe Byeong-chan scored it in the 28th minute, from Kang Joon-Hyuck’s assist, and nothing after that changed the score. That is the whole head-to-head record between the clubs, and it is one week old.

Where the two sides stand

Kuching City FC have one point from their three group matches. They lost 2-1 at Phnom Penh Crown on 17 September. They drew 1-1 at home with Kitchee on 15 October. Then came the 1-0 defeat in Gangneung.

The opening night in Phnom Penh is the one that hurt most. Dyer put Phnom Penh Crown ahead in the 55th minute, Mujagic levelled in the 73rd minute, and Dyer scored again in the 90+1’ to take the match. A point was there until stoppage time.

Against Kitchee, Kuching City FC were ahead in the 2nd minute through an own goal credited to Pong Cheuk-Hei. Everton Camargo equalised in the 14th minute, from Víctor Camarasa’s assist. Neither side scored again.

Gangwon FC arrive with a defeat of their own behind them. Makan Bola reported that the side coached by Chung Kyung-ho were beaten in the K League 1 Championship Round on 1 November. That is a league result, not a group one, and it says nothing on its own about how they will set up in Kuching.

Myths first

It would be easy to say the first meeting showed a gap between the sides too wide to close in a week. The score does not show that. It was 1-0, decided by one goal before half-time.

Nor is a single point from three games proof that Kuching City FC have been swept aside. Every one of their three group matches was decided by one goal or drawn.

What will decide it

StraitScore’s view: this match turns on whether Kuching City FC can score goals of their own, and there are two reasons, in this order.

The first is the scoring record. Kuching City FC have two goals in three group matches, and one of those was the own goal against Kitchee. The only goal a Kuching City FC player has scored in the group so far is Mujagic’s against Phnom Penh Crown. A side that has not scored against Gangwon FC or since the 2nd minute against Kitchee has to find a way through at home.

The second is the late goal. Kuching City FC conceded in the 90+1’ in Phnom Penh, and that goal turned a draw into a defeat. Against Gangwon FC they stayed within one goal for more than an hour after Choe’s strike. Holding the score close is something they have done; keeping it to the final whistle is the part still missing.

So the question for Aidil Sharin Sahak, the Singaporean coach Makan Bola names at Kuching City FC, is a plain one. Can his side turn a home match against a team they have already run close into a goal, and then protect what that goal gives them?

After this, Kuching City FC host Phnom Penh Crown on 26 November and visit Kitchee on 3 December.

Kuching City FC play Gangwon FC at Stadium Taha Ariffin on 5 November (Thursday), kicking off at 8.15pm Malaysian time.