UFL: Loyola wallops Global 4-0, Kaya wins opener
Recaps of Tuesday's Division 1 UFL League matches in Emperador stadium.
Loyola Meralco Sparks 4, Global 0.
New year. New coach. New Iranian signings. New future Azkal. New blue-and-yellow kits.
But unfortunately for Global, same old disappointing product on the pitch.
On Tuesday the Sparks defeated arch-rival Global 4-0 in front of hundreds of fans in the League opener for both sides. Loyola picked up goals from Lee Joo Young, Phil Younghusband, Fred Gonzalez and Matthew Hartmann to pick up a surprising rout.
Meanwhile Global's debutantes, Charles Pettys (being groomed for the national team), Mojtaba Miromohammadi, Hamed Kakavand, and coach Leigh Manson are left to rue a desultory start to their 2014 campaign.
The Sparks got on the board with Lee's strike from outside the box seven minutes in. The ball seemed to catch Global keeper Roland Sadia off-guard. The Ivorian dove in the opposite direction of the ball and he changed course too late to stop the shot from going in.
A minute before the halftime whistle Phil Younghusband got on the scoresheet when his free kick weaseled through Global's wall and past Sadia for 2-0. The Sparks dummied on the free kick twice and that threw off a Global defender, who bit on the fakes, creating a crack in the wall that Phil exploited brilliantly.
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Things got worse five minutes into the second half when an unmarked Gonzalez, back from a catastrophic knee injury sustained in last year's league, nodded home from close range off a corner. Sadia was caught in no-man's land on the goal.
“I moved forward and then moved back. My defender didn't notice me moving back” said Gonzalez, the former National team player who turned 36 last Friday.
In stoppage time the Sparks picked up their fourth thanks to a free kick from Hartmann that once again magically filtered through another Global wall past Sadia.
An unsung hero for Loyola was right back Alexandro Elnar. The Bacong, Negros Oriental native is rarely used by coach Vince Santos but with both PJ Fadrigalan and Simon Greatwich suspended on cards, Elnar got the start and impressed, helping shut down the likes of Jeffrey Christiaens, Marwin Angeles, and Misagh Bahadoran on his flank.
“Now that we finally won a title (2013 UFL Cup) we can focus on our style of play” said Santos. “No more burden of having to win a first championship.”
Loyola defeated Global 2-0 in the quarterfinals of that competition.
Global did have plenty of possession and several attempts, notably from Mark Hartmann, Matt's brother, and Miromohammadi, who blundered a free header in the first half.
There is one concern for Loyola though; James Younghusband was stretchered off very late in the game after taking a knock near his right ankle. He was unable to put any weight on it afterwards and needed help walking. Word has come out from a reliable source that the injury is not serious.
Gracing the occasion for Global was Carlie De Murga. The Azkal is still rehabbing his knee after mangling his ACL last year. Trust us, that's him behind all that facial hair.
Kaya 2, Pachanga PLDT Home Fibr, 1.
Kaya kicked off their season with a solid win over Pachanga Diliman, now known as Pachanga PLDT Home Fibr for sponsorship purposes.
First-half goals from Chris Greatwich and new Australian player Thomas Taylor helped confirm the victory, while PLDT Home Fibr's Ariel Zerrudo pulled one back in second-half stoppage time.
27 minutes in Greatwich collected a loose ball on the left flank, dribbled for a few meters, then unleashed a shot that powered between Pachanga keeper Steve Yambou and the near post for 1-0.
Three minutes later Greatwich nearly got a second but his shot was denied by Yambou.
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Kaya's second score was a true team goal. It began in the 40th minute when OJ Porteria grabbed a David Cortina giveaway deep in Kaya territory and stormed down the right side. He offloaded outside to Anton Del Rosario, who floated a cross to Emmanuel Mbata. The Nigerian didn't strike the ensuing volley cleanly, but it bounced to an open Taylor, who drilled it home for 2-0.
Pachanga adjusted in the second half but Kaya still had the lion's share of chances. The best was Toshiya Hosoe's wicked long-range shot that Yambou alertly parried over the bar nine minutes from time.
PLDT Home Fibr's dead-ball wizard, Reza Amirkhizan, was way off form, skying three free kick attempts. No wonder in the 91st minute, Zerrudo was tasked to take a late free kick and he made the most of an iffy Kaya wall to rocket the ball past Nick O'Donnell for 2-1. Moments later, the ref ended the game.
“I knew going into the game that it wouldn't be pretty today, but we showed a lot of grit and determination” said Kaya coach David Perkovic.
Making his Kaya debut on Tuesday was Brazilian-Japanese heart throb Daniel Matsunaga. He came on as a late sub and performed well.
Follow Bob on Twitter @PassionateFanPH.
