AFC Champions League Two
The Dutch centre-back, who made his first start since moving from NEC Nijmegen at the end of the summer transfer window and played 74 minutes before being replaced by Yuki Soma, also highlighted the moment when the game was won.
#ACLTwo | Group G: FC Machida Zelvia (JPN) 2-0 Preah Khan Reach Svay Rieng FC (CAM)
“Very happy to be here and make my debut,” said the 29-year-old. “Of course I’m very happy with the win as that is the most important.
“We can do a lot of things better like scoring more goals so that we can kill the game easier but we can be happy with the clean sheet.
“We came out of the dressing room for the second half with good instructions and this helped us to get the second goal and it was a very important moment in the game.”
Mitchell Duke had given the Japanese side the lead in the 20th minute with a stunning volley but Machida Zelvia could not find the second goal they were looking for, not until changes were made for the second half.
Head coach Go Kuroda sent on Tete Yengi and Henry Mochizuki for Duke and Futa Tokumura, with Yengi netting the second on the hour mark.
Having experienced the AFC Champions League Elite™ last season, Kuroda knew what to expect and made the right decision to alter the team despite holding the lead in the match.
“Last year, we started the ACL game against FC Seoul and got a late equaliser so we knew the first game could be difficult but we played together as a team today to get the result and a clean sheet,” said Kuroda.
“I want to thank the players for giving their all and playing until the end. We scored in the first half but then had a few more chances but couldn’t score.
“At half-time I told the players to make use of the space to get more goals and that's how we got the second goal. We have to prepare well for the next game.”
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