PETALING JAYA, 11 Oct – Kedah needed only a draw to confirm their runners-up spot in the Malaysian Super League behind champions Johor Darul Takzim but the Red Eagles came off 3-2 winners over Perak in their match played at the Perak Stadium in Ipoh on Sunday.
It was certainly a bad night for Perak. The defeat saw Perak slip to fourth place in the 12-team league shortened to one round due to the Covid-19 pandemic after Terengganu beat Pahang 2-1 at the Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Stadium in Gong Badak, Kuala Terengganu.
With the win and second spot with 22 points, Kedah secured the slot for the AFC Cup while Super League champions Johor Darul Takzim will carry Malaysia’s challenge in the AFC Champions League.
It was heartbreak for Perak who needed a win to finish second in the league but the homesters were 2-0 down by the 31st minute with goals by Liberian ace Kpah Sherman and Fadzrul Daniel in the 28th and 31st minutes respectively.
Perak came back strong and reduced the deficit on 42 minutes with a twice-taken penalty. Brazilian Leandro Dos Santos scored from the second attempt after Kedah keeper Azri Ghani was hauled up for an infringement after stopping Shahrel Fikri’s spot-kick.
The homesters drew level before the halftime break when Leandro scored again – this time with a header off a freekick by Shahrel to throw his team a lifeline.
However, it was Kedah who came out stronger for the second half. Renan Alves turned hero for Kedah when he headed the winner off a corner kick by Baddrol Bakhtiar in the 63rd minute.
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