TERENGGANU are looking forward to taking on Kuala Lumpur SPA in their opening FA Cup tie at Selayang Municipal Stadium today.
After enduring the worst possible start in more than 10 years in the Super League, Terengganu, who have yet to win a single match this new season, are in need of a fresh beginning.
Head coach E. Elavarasan said luck had deserted Terengganu in the last five matches when they only managed two draws against three losses.
"Except for not scoring goals, we did not play too badly in all our matches," said the 50-year-old coach who admitted to be feeling bad for the fans.
"They are not used to seeing their team at the bottom of the table and that is why it is very important for us to win our first game in the new season when we begin our FA Cup campaign against KL SPA," he said.
Elavarasan said there will be enough time for his team to improve their league position as they have only played five of 22 league matches.
"But against KL SPA, it is a must-win game as there will be no second chance in a one-off knock-out competition like the FA Cup," he said.
The former Felda United FC coach said a win over a Premier League outfit such as KL SPA is not guaranteed so his players need to be at their best to ensure progress into the next round.
"We need more from our strikers as at the moment (Effa) Owona is not scoring enough goals and Manaf (Mamat) is not at his best.
"We may have to tinker a little with the team as quiet a number of players are out injured and may not be ready to play on Friday," he said.
Captain Faizal Mohammad and his partner in defence Zubir Azmi is doubtful for tomorrow's match while striker Farderin Kadir has yet to recover from an injury.
"Injuries, however, are not too big of a problem for our team as we have quite a deep bench but we do need to start scoring more goals soon," said Faizal.
"It is imperative our strikers bring their shooting boots to Selayang as we can only win when we score more goals than our opponents."
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