KUALA LUMPUR, May 5 -- The shortened 2020 Super League campaign, which is expected to resume in September, is two-time runner-up Perak’s best chance to win the title since the league was introduced in 2004, said skipper Shahrul Mohd Saad.
He was giving his view after the Malaysian Football League (MFL), the administrator of the M-League, announced that the shortened Super League would see the 12 teams playing only 11 matches, instead of 22. This means the teams will play each other just once instead of twice.
Four matches had been played before the season was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Super League and Premier League will held from Sept 1 to Sept 27 while the Malaysia Cup competition will be from Oct 17 to Nov 7. The FA Cup and Challenge Cup have been cancelled.
With seven more Super League matches to go, national defender Shahrul is optimistic that Perak, also known as ‘The Bos Gaurus’, could provide a stern test to defending champion Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT).
After four matches, JDT leads the 12-team Super League standings with 10 points while Perak is second on eight points.
Should Perak lift its maiden Super League title, then it will earn an automatic spot to play in the 2021 Asian Champions League (ACL).
“The shortened format has given us the chance to get something from the Super League campaign, but we can’t afford to drop any more points as there aren’t many matches left. I also hope we can continue from where we left off.
“The key, though, is how fast our players can regain their fitness after such a long layoff (due to the Movement Control Order to curb the spread of COVID-19). So, that’s quite a concern," explained Shahrul in a statement issued by the MFL today.
For the record, Perak emerged as Super League runner-up in the 2006-2007 season and in 2018.
Last Friday, the MFL announced changes to the 2020 M-League format after taking into consideration the decision of the Special Ministers’ Meeting on MCO Implementation chaired by Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
-- BERNAMA
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