JOHOR BAHRU, Aug 27 – Bergson da Silva was too hot to handle for an under-strength Sri Pahang as the Brazilian notched a hattrick and fired Johor Darul Takzim (JDT) to a 3-0 win for their eighth successive Super League title at the Sultan Ibrahim stadium in Iskandar Puteri, Johor Bahru on Friday
In the process, Bergson also moved to the top as the top scorer with 23 goals to dislodge Selangor FC’s Nigerian striker Ifedayo Olusegun who has 22 goals.
The win over Sri Pahang kept the Southern Tigers on the top with an unassailable 51 points from 20 matches.
Terengganu FC is second in the league standings with 37 points from 19 matches followed by Kedah FC on 35 from 17 matches.
“We are obsessed with winning and it is an achievement that is a new landmark in Malaysian football. Of course, I am happy to be the coach…it’s tough but we have been the most consistent team in the league,” said JDT’s head coach Benjamin Mora.
In the same breath, the long-serving Mexican added: “It does mean he is the best coach when the team wins and neither a bad coach when the team loses.”
Pahang head coach Dollah Salleh, praised his new-look team for showing their commitment and desire to stay in the game against the highly touted opponents.
“We gave a tough fight and I am impressed with the young players, some of whom were making their (Super) league debut. They showed character,” said the former national coach who revealed that even the replacements picked up injuries.
“We are in the danger zone (relegation) but hopefully we can win at least one match in the remaining fixtures. Hopefully, we will have some of the injured coming back.”
Bergson scored the first of the night when he outwitted three markers before drilling home a grounder past Pahang goalkeeper, third choice Daniel Wafiuddin in the eighth minute.
For the record, a spate of injuries to first-team players and suspension to French defender Herold Gelon saw Pahang coach Dollah Salleh field a makeshift lineup against the Southern Tigers.
Bergson netted his second was neat flick into the Pahang right corner off an assist by Safiq Rahim on 41st minutes and completed his hattrick from a Gonzalo Cabrera pass just before the halftime break.
Hailed as the most consistent team in the league, JDT is also known as “The Untouchables” for their supremacy in the Malaysian League and has won the Super League title since 2014.
JDT is the best-managed club in the country, owned by HRH Major-General Tunku Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim, the Crown Prince of Johor.
The Super League “kingpins” also won the prestigious Malaysia Cup twice (2017, 2019); the FA Cup (2016), and the Charity Shield six times (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021).
In between, JDT also engraved its name on the AFC Cup in 2015 to become the first Southeast Asian Club to win a Continental title. In the final played in Dushanbe, Tajikistan the Southern Tigers defeated local hope FC Istiklol 1-0 for the silverware.
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