The clash on Wednesday pitted the top two sides in Group H against each other and after conceding a late goal in their home game against Kaya earlier in April, Makassar looked determined from the outset to stamp their authority on the contest.
After Rizky Pellu’s header opened the scoring in the 21st minute, Finnish striker Eero Markkanen doubled the away side’s lead just three minutes later and, from there, the platform for the Indonesian side to go on and eventually win the match was set.
Kalezić admitted the first encounter between the pair provided them invaluable knowledge on what to expect ahead of their Matchday Four fixture.
“It obviously helps a lot,” he said.
“Like I said before the game, we analysed the opponent and got a lot more information about Kaya which prepared us a lot better for this game.
“That resulted in two goals and, besides that, we controlled the game."
The match at Pana-ad Park and Football Stadium was a fiercely contested affair throughout, and both teams were reduced to 10 men in the second half.
The hosts did manage to pull one back in added time through Jovin Bedic’s penalty but it was too little too late as Makassar held out to go three points clear of Kaya and secure a potentially crucial better head-to-head record over the Filipino side.
“I’m very happy the boys won this very important game away in the Philippines against an opponent which was equal [in the group] with us,” he added.
“We’ll think about the next game in a few days.”
With Home United scoring late to defeat Lao Toyota FC 3-2 in Wednesday’s other Group H game, the Singaporean side remained just a point behind Makassar with two games to play.
The two will meet in Cibinong, Indonesia, in two weeks’ time and should Makassar win then they will secure top spot in the group with a game to spare.
