ISKANDAR PUTERI, Aug 7 (Bernama) -- Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) are ready to kick off the 2025/2026 Malaysia League (M-League) season in style as they set out to defend their Charity Shield title against Selangor FC at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, here tomorrow night.
Head coach Xisco Munoz, who will make his debut with the Southern Tigers tomorrow, believes his team are mentally and tactically prepared to rise to the occasion after a good pre-season in Spain.
The 44-year-old Spaniard said JDT owner Tunku Mahkota Ismail played a key role in smoothing the team’s preparations ahead of their title defence.
“The most important also is we need to understand it's our first game at home, we need to connect with the fans, we need to connect with our style and we need to give our best.
“I think we are in a good way. We made very good pre-season (preparations) and we need to continue to improve a lot of things but we are in a good way,” Munoz told the pre match press conference here, today.
JDT enjoyed a promising pre-season in Spain, which included credible draws against Spanish side Levante UD and English League One outfit Cardiff City.
Meanwhile, JDT captain Natxo Insa also admitted that a quality pre-season has helped strengthen the 11-time consecutive Super League champions and put them on the right track to defend their title.
“I think we had a really good pre-season in Spain. We faced some strong teams and tomorrow we’re aiming to give our best because we know how important it is to start the season with the right momentum. We need to carry forward the energy we’ve shown since pre-season into the match,” the 39-year-old midfielder said.
JDT have lifted the season-opening silverware nine times, including seven consecutive editions between 2018 and 2024.
The clash between JDT and Selangor is seen as a long-awaited rematch after last season’s Charity Shield encounter was cancelled following Selangor’s last-minute withdrawal.
Selangor were forced to pull out of the fixture due to a series of criminal incidents and threats involving several players, most notably the acid attack on winger Mohamad Faisal Abdul Halim on May 5.
As a result, JDT were awarded a 3-0 ‘walkover’ victory and three Super League points.
-- BERNAMA
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