KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur City (KL City) FC young striker Muhammad Haqimi Azim Rosli believes his team’s new coach Nenad Bacina is capable of continuing the legacy of former coach Bojan Hodak.
The 20-year-old player said that Bacina possessed similarities in terms of tactics which Hodak had planned since the two had worked together before.
“Bacina and Hodak were working together for so long, so their tactics are similar and I hope the new coach can give the best to KL City.
“We, as players, will give 100 per cent commitment both on and off the field,” he said when met at an event hosted by a pay-TV broadcaster here, last night.
Bacina has previously been Hodak’s assistant coach, including with Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) in 2014, the national under-19 men’s football team in (2017-2019), Indonesian club PSM Makassar (2020) and KL City (2021- 2022).
The Croatian has also managed two Singaporean clubs, Hougang United (2012) and Tampines Rovers (2013), apart from being appointed as director of the Al-Fayhla FC Academy in Saudi Arabia last year before returning to KL City following Hodak’s resignation last month.
Hodak helped the city’s squad to the 2021 Malaysia Cup title by defeating JDT, 2-0, in the finals, ending a 32-year title drought.
The 52-year-old Croatian also guided KL City to the finals of the 2022 AFC Cup and the 2023 FA Cup.
In the Super League, KL City finished sixth in the 2021 and 2022 seasons under Hodak.
In the meantime, Muhammad Haqimi, who has made nine appearances with eight of them as a substitute in the 2023 Super League campaign, is determined to give his best performance if he gets Bacina’s trust to be included in the starting line-up after this.
Muhammad Haqimi is also confident that his team will be able to continue excellent performance after Hodak’s absence to defeat Selangor FC in the Super League match at the Petaling Jaya City Council Stadium, tomorrow. – BERNAMA
