Terengganu FC 0-3 Johor Darul Ta’zim: two goals before the break and a saved penalty

Johor Darul Ta’zim won 3-0 at Terengganu FC on 18 October, their sixth win in six matches of the Malaysia Super League season. They have 18 points, 28 goals scored and none conceded. Nobody in the league has scored against them yet. The AFF’s report of the match describes them as defending champions.

The result settled the top of the table for now. At kick-off, Johor Darul Ta’zim and Selangor FC were level on 15 points. At the final whistle, Johor Darul Ta’zim were first with 18 and Selangor FC second with 15, having played five matches to their six. Kuching City FC are third on 12.

For Terengganu FC, the evening left their points where they were: 5 from four matches at kick-off, 5 from five at the end. They are level on points with Negeri Sembilan FC and Star City FC. Their one league win is the 3-0 against Melaka FC on 22 August.

How the goals came

Terengganu FC’s own match report says Haziq Kutty tried an early shot that went wide of the goal. Bergson put Johor Darul Ta’zim ahead in the first half. Terengganu FC sent on Habib Haroon for Ngewi Ndasi in the 37th minute. Oscar Arribas doubled the lead in the 42nd minute, heading in from a free kick, the club’s report says. It was 2-0 at half-time.

The same report says Terengganu FC tried to raise the intensity in the second half to close the gap, and that their best chance came from the penalty spot in the 64th minute. Johor Darul Ta’zim goalkeeper Syihan Hazmi saved it. Shahab Zahedi, who had replaced Bergson in the 75th minute, scored the third in the 89th minute.

Why it went this way

Were the absentees the story? Terengganu FC’s report says the side played without several key players who were injured. That is a fair point about their squad, and the club makes it first. It is not, on its own, an account of how the goals came. Nor had Johor Darul Ta’zim arrived short of results: they won 2-0 away to Pohang Steelers in the AFC Champions League in the week before.

The real reasons are two, and they rank in this order.

First, timing. Two goals before half-time, the second from a set piece by the home club’s own account, meant Terengganu FC spent the second half chasing the game rather than shaping it. A side that has conceded nothing all season is the worst kind to chase.

Second, the penalty. It was the one opening the home club’s report singles out as their best, and Syihan Hazmi kept it out. Against a defence that has conceded nothing, a chance like that is the one a side cannot waste, and this one was saved.

The last goal belongs to the bench rather than to the reasons: Zahedi came on in the 75th minute and scored in the 89th minute.

This fixture has gone the same way before. Johor Darul Ta’zim won 5-0 on the same ground on 31 October 2025. When the sides met at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium on 11 April 2026, Terengganu FC took a 1-1 draw.

What comes next

Terengganu FC visit Sabah FC at Likas Stadium, Kota Kinabalu, on 31 October, kicking off at 7.30pm Malaysian time.

Verdict

StraitScore’s view: Johor Darul Ta’zim won this on the moments that decided it, scoring twice before the break and keeping their goal intact when Terengganu FC had their chance from the spot. Six wins, 28 goals scored and none conceded is a record built from evenings like this one. They are first on 18 points, and Selangor FC, on 15, have a game in hand. The perfect start is earned, not lucky.