KUALA LUMPUR: Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) face a crucial AFC Champions League Elite (ACLE) match against China's Shandong Taishan at the Jihan Olympic Sports Centre in Shandong today.
JDT captain Jordi Armat said his team will have to find ways to counter Shandong's long balls.
"They play a lot of long balls. We also work on that. It's very important for us to get these second balls and try to create chances to score," Armat said.
JDT coach Hector Bidoglio said Shandong are formidable opponents with strong international players.
"Shandong have a very good squad, very good players. But for me, the most important thing is to focus on ourselves. We know the AFC Champions League is very difficult, but we need to continue growing and staying competitive," said Bidoglio.
Shandong assistant coach, Tang Tian, spoke about the difficulty of finding weaknesses in JDT.
Tang expressed respect for the Malaysian side and said: "Everyone knows that JDT are the dominant team in Malaysia. I've been searching for references about their losses but haven't found any.
"JDT are a team with a lineup of international-level players, a mix of good imports and local players.
Shandong, currently ranked ninth in the ACLE standings with one win, one draw and two losses, will be hoping to recover from their recent setback in the Chinese FA Cup final and put on a strong performance in front of their home crowd.