Wimbo Satwiko

Persija's Leonardt (32) battling I Gede Sukadana Pratama of Persela. (JG Photo/Yudhi Sukma Wijaya)

Persija Stays In Title Race With 1-0 Win

Persija Jakarta kept its title hopes alive as it vaulted up the standings with a 1-0 defeat of Persela Lamongan at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium on Wednesday.

The Kemayoran Tigers climbed from ninth to fourth place in the Indonesian Super League, with 27 points from seven wins, six draws and four losses. Persela remains in 10th with 24 points. Arema leads the standings with 36 points from 11 wins, three draws and three losses, followed by Persiba Balikpapan with 30 points.

Aliyudin struck the winner in the 30th minute, the striker’s fifth goal of the season.

Persija’s newly appointed coach, Benny Dollo, praised his side’s performance.

“It was a tough game for us as Persela dominated the second half,” Benny said. “We were struck by injuries just before the match, and I had to field injured players like Bambang Pamungkas and Mustafic Fahrudin.”

But Persija could have put the match away much earlier after dominating the first 45 minutes.

Persija had its first chance in the fourth minute but Leonard Tupamahu’s weak shot went straight to the Persela keeper.

In the 20th minute, midfielder Erick Setiawan curled the ball toward the top corner of the net, but goalkeeper Fauzan Mubarak was able to tip the ball over.

Persija finally took the lead in the 30th minute. Fauzan got his head on a pass from Talaohu Abdul Musyafry, and the ball rolled into the path of Aliyudin, who fired into the net to give Persija a 1-0 advantage.

Persela coach Widodo Cahyono Putro sent his team into full attack mode in the second half, and the visitors had a clear chance for an equalizer when Martin Zada’s shot just sailed over the bar in the 46th minute.

Three minutes later, Persela missed another golden opportunity when Jimi Suparno sprinted past Baihakki Khaizan, only to fire over the bar.

Persija almost doubled its lead when Bambang Pamungkas’s free kick hit the post in the 63rd minute.

Both teams made tactical changes during the game and put fresh legs onto the pitch. Looking for the equalizer, Persela brought on Dicky Firasat and Zainal Arifin for Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto and Martin Zada to add some force to its attack.

Persela again almost equalized in the 76th, but Syamsul Arif missed at the near post. Two minutes later, Muhamad Yasir tipped over Gangga Mudana’s shot.

Widodo said his side had trouble finishing and should have done better with its chances during the match.

“I would like to congratulate Persija,” he said. “We had many chances, but we failed to score. It’s our biggest problem, and we’ll try to solve it in the second round.”

The match marked the end of the ISL’s first half. Clubs will take a short break before returning to action on Tuesday. ISL

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