KUANTAN: Felda United caretaker coach Mohamed Nik is already feeling the heat barely 48 hours after he took charge of the club following the sudden departure of head coach Azmi Mohamed.
Mohamed made a losing Super League debut as Pahang fell to Kelantan 2-1 in Jengka on Saturday.
He was quick to admit that he was under some pressure to help the team get back on the winning track.
Being part of the Pahang’s coaching setup since 2014, Mohamed said he only took charge of the team for two days, and felt that the players require more time to adopt to his playing philosophy.
“Azmi’s decision came as a shock to everyone and now I need the players to adopt to my system. There is some pressure especially Felda United has been one of those elite sides that has been performing consistently in the domestic competitions over the past few years.”
Felda has been showing a lot of promises since 2014 and we have been always challenging for honors....this year we have the AFC competition and I can only prepare the team with whatever resources that I have,” he told reporters after the match in Jengka on Saturday.
Looking visibly disappointed with the defeat to Kelantan after conceding a last minute goal, Mohamed said he hoped luck will be on his side in the upcoming matches, especially when they play in the second round of the FA Cup against defending champions Darul Ta’zim in Jengka on Feb 14.
On Argentine Gaston Cellerino who missed a string of opportunities, Mohamed said he was not sure how much more time the 30-year-old needs to blend with the team.
Kelantan head coach Zahasmi Ismail said: “Despite a slow start due to the field condition (artificial grass), we adopted well and collecting three points is a huge relief.”
Felda was dangerous in the second half but we managed to prevent them from scoring and took our chances well.
“The team will travel to Perak for our FA Cup match against PKNP FC on Tuesday. Piya(Badhri Radzi) suffered a minor injury on the head and we hopes he will be available for our next match,” he said.
The Kelantan skipper was substituted in the first half after he suffered a knock on the head but was later spotted on the team bench with his head bandaged.
A header by Lebanese import Mohammed Mahmoud Ghaddar in the 89th minute saw Kelantan walking away as winners after both teams were tied 1-1 following goals from Indra Putra Mahayuddin in the 33rd minutes and Felda’s Zah Rahan Krangar in the 45 minutes.