Melaka Sink 10-man Sabah With Second-half Blitz To Check Into Malaysia Cup Quarter-finals

KOTA KINABALU, Jan 22 (Bernama) -- Melaka FC advanced to the Malaysia Cup quarter-finals after beating 10-man Sabah 3-0 in the return leg of their last-16 match at the Likas Stadium here tonight.

The teams drew 2-2 in the first leg.

Sabah, the FA Cup runners-up, began aggressively in the return-leg clash and even had the ball in the back of the net in the 12th minute, but Gabriel Peres’ effort was chalked off after a Video Referee Assistant (VAR) check for offside.

The turning point of the match came in the dying minutes of the first half when Sabah's Gary Steven Robbat was shown the red card by referee Mohd Faizudin Ismail for rough play, a decision confirmed by VAR.

Melaka began the second half with an extra spring in their steps and shot into the lead when their Egyptian striker, Ahmed Shamsaldin, unleashed a piledriver that beat Sabah goalkeeper Khairul Fahmi Che Mat in the 50th minute.

Despite being a goal down and playing with 10 men, Sabah gave it a real fight but were undone in the 86th minute when Melaka defender Che Rashid Che Halim doubled their lead.

Two minutes later, Ahmed notched his second goal - and Melaka's third - to ensure a happy trip back home.

Melaka are slated to meet Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) in the quarter-finals as the Southern Tigers hold a massive 10-1 lead against Police heading into their last-16 return-leg clash.

-- BERNAMA