TPL
Chonburi 0-3 Muang Thong Utd
Chonburi Stadium
Attendance: 8,469
Sunday 5th March, 2017
Match Report
by Peter Reeves
So, impress me.
So you settle back in front of your TV waiting to be impressed. Haven’t seen much of them. The champions are in town and they haven’t started this season too badly. Many of the Thai national team on view against poor little Chonburi who are having a torrid time on and off the pitch it seems. Being interested in defensive formations and their application I was interested to watch. Kawin, best keeper in Thailand. Not that that is saying much given the clowns we witness most weeks, and a defence that hasn’t conceded yet this season.
Chonburi started with fear in their eyes and sat back. Not a bad choice. Let’s have a little look first and see what they’ve got. But then an attack down the left and Kawin lets the ball drift over his head and it hits the bar. In the ensuing undignified defensive scramble Prince missed from 3 feet. Let me clear my head. This is Thailand’s best is it, the guy who saved the national team from a couple of 6 or 7 nil batterings in World Cup qualifying? And this is the defence that hasn’t conceded yet is it? Not very impressed with either. Chonburi should have the lead, three minutes gone.
Muang Thong were passing it around, most of it aimlessly and didn’t give the impression they were about to put the Sharks in the soup, but then a goal handed to them on a plate. Poor blue defending didn’t close Teerasil down on the edge of the box and Chanin let the ball past his left hand into the corner. Poor defending, poor goalkeeping.
There were some interesting tackles flying around most of which were let go, on 18 minutes a particularly dangerous one on a Shark that went without caution. I thought a two footed challenge these days meant at least a yellow and sometimes a red doesn’t it? Well not here clearly.
Chonburi were still sitting back after 20 minutes but I noted that despite all the pretty passing Muang Thong were going nowhere and weren’t the threat that I thought they would be. Come on lads I thought, get in their faces.
For some reason I began to question the Muang thong temperament. They seemed very retaliatory and with Xisco complaining about everything they looked far from happy. It was here that a contentious issue arose. Prince jumped for the ball with a defender and they both landed in a heap. Not an uncommon scenario. But then the defender lashed out and kicked Prince. We had handbags for a few seconds but then I watched the referee. He had seen it. The linesman had seen it. What was he going to do? Yellow card. Oh dear. Another Thai officiating coup. Lashing out and kicking a player is red I’m afraid. Early bath, sunshine.
Chonburi were finding a little belief. Attacks were getting through especially down the left channel and on 22 Kawin and the defence again combined to create one unholy mess 3 meters from goal and again the chance was wasted. This is the team that hasn’t conceded yet? Did the other teams turn up? If Chonburi had in their midst a decent predatory striker they’d be 2-1 up.
And so we went on. Chonburi trying to mount sustained pressure but failing because their passing especially the final ball, was poor. The visitors still passing it around but without much threat. Xisco still complaining as he pushed a player after a powder puff challenge. No action of course.
On 30 a good Chonburi position on the edge of the box wasted because the player in possession didn’t see Kroerkrit in acres of space in this much lauded defence down the right. On 31 Kroerkrit gets behind the full back again but an awful cross came to nothing.
Half time. I had not been impressed. The defence looked shaky (just like the national team) and apart from Celio, vulnerable. Lots of passing but so what if it’s not incisive. They had been bad tempered and it was clear why the majority of the population hate the sight of them. Chanin had made a couple of decent saves for a change, despite giving away the goal, but it had not been the one way traffic I thought it might be. Chonburi? Lots of effort after the first 20 minutes and really should have scored at least twice. They were still in it.
Chonburi seemed to decide to have a go in the second half and why not. In doing that though the defence, disorganized as it usually is, were going to be vulnerable. Muang Thong seemed to be playing like they’d done enough or maybe they were tiring after mid week exertions, but either way Chonburi were attack minded.
On 51 a warning as Chanin was forced to pull off a good save and then at the other end A free header from 2 metres straight at Kawin. Oh if only they had a decent striker. On 52 not a sucker punch more of terrible defending as the MU player allowed a free shot from a corner which he took well. 0-2 and it’s over now I think.
Sharks continued to push forward though to their credit but it amounted to little. Too many wasted passes and missed opportunities and a total lack of intelligence. Every hard earned corner and free kick placed straight into Kawin’s eager hands. Who is using the team brain cell today?
On 75 a sucker punch as the Qilins broke away for a third through a non-existent defence. Its ok pushing forward to look for a goal but you’ve got to keep a basic defensive formation, but then no one at this club has the faintest idea what that means let alone applying it.
Chonburi’s evening, striking wise, was perfectly illustrated when in the 90th minute Marques free kick from a decent position landed somewhere near the beach.
Muang Thong Utd then, 3-0 winners. Flattered them a bit in that Chonburi should have scored at least once and probably more, but they did just about deserve the win. Chonburi? Well Therdsak’s problems are there for all to see. 2nd from bottom now but they won’t stay there of course. Two or three years of no ambition by the owners and poor basic management has finally borne fruit as it eventually does to all clubs. It’s a long way now from the glory days and an awful long way back. A road the club doesn’t seem to have the faintest idea of how to travel.
Oh how the once mighty have fallen.
No comments:
Post a Comment