AFC Cup Quarter-final First Leg: East Bengal 1-0 Semen Padang – Five Talking Points

Wasteful Semen Padang still favourites to go through

Semen Padang were wasteful in the first leg

Semen Padang coach Jafri Sastra claimed after the game that East Bengal were slightly lucky to win 1-0 and he is not entirely wrong as the hosts didn’t create enough clear cut opportunities while the Indonesian side kept Gurpreet Singh Sandhu busy and also hit the woodwork just minutes before the only goal of the game. But in truth, Semen Padang have only themselves to blame for their poor finishing as they could have easily scored a couple of away goals and won the first leg. In the first half in particular, the technical superiority of Semen Padang was evident as they controlled midfield and threatened to kill the tie in the first leg.

But Semen Padang paid for their wastefulness and now have very little margin for error in the second leg. However on paper at least they remain slight favourites because home advantage in the second leg could be decisive while physically they are in much better shape than East Bengal who are also getting used to life under Marcos Falopa. Semen Padang will also be boosted by the return of Indonesia international defender Wahyu Wijiastanto and Argentinean attacking midfielder Esteban Vizcarra from suspension. Like East Bengal, Semen Padang have won each of their home matches in this season’s AFC Cup with an average attendance of more than 10,000. The second leg could be witnessed by a capacity crowd of 15,000 at the Haji Agus Salim Stadium and that could give the Indonesian club a further edge over an East Bengal side that looks to be a work in progress at the moment.