Bacolod City: Ceres Negros of the Philippines must come from a goal behind in the second-leg of their AFC Cup ASEAN Zonal Semi-final against Malaysia’s Johor Darul Ta’zim on Wednesday if they are to advance to the Inter Zone Semi-finals.
Hazwan Bakri’s second-half winner gave Johor a 3-2 victory in the first-leg two weeks ago and maintained his side’s perfect home record in the competition, but the 2015 winners travel to the Philippines with plenty to do if they are to progress to the next round.
Ceres Negros
In an entertaining first-leg, Gonzalo Cabrera gave the hosts the lead before Ceres hit back through a quick-fire double from Fernando Rodriguez and Bienvenido Maranon, only for Safiq Rahim and Bakri to hand Johor the win.
But Ceres are strong at home, having already claimed 5-0 and 6-2 victories in front of their own fans, and will know their two goals in Malaysia could prove crucial to the eventual outcome.
With eight goals in seven games, Maranon is the tournament’s second-highest scorer and Ceres will again look to the Spaniard to inspire them to glory.
Elsewhere, the forward's countryman Rodriguez has netted five times, while the midfield quartet of Manuel Ott, Kevin Ingreso, Iain Ramsay and Jose Porteria have all delivered their fair share of assists.
Johor Darul Ta’zim
Johor have been outstanding at home yet have won just once on the road and suffered a 3-2 defeat to Global FC on their last trip to the Philippines.
A low-scoring loss would see the Malaysian side exit but the tournament’s top scorers will be confident they have enough going forward to trouble Ceres, having netted 19 times in seven games on the continent so far.
Johor’s seven-goal leading scorer Gabriel Guerra is likely to pose the biggest threat to the Ceres backline, while the Argentine’s compatriot Cabrera finally found his shooting boots in the first-leg after enduring a barren spell in front of goal.
Equally dangerous is midfielder Rahim, who has created five of his side’s goals in the tournament, as well as weighing in with three of his own including the equaliser two weeks ago.
Suspensions: None
Ceres Negros (PHI) v Johor Darul Ta’zim (MAS)
Venue: Pana-ad Park and Football Stadium, Bacolod City
Kick-off: May 31, 19:30 UTC+8
Photos: Lagardère Sports
Source: the-afc.com