Sakuma ready for Derby challenge

Geylang International centre-back Rio Sakuma is unfazed by the prospect of taking on the Tampines Rovers’ attacking pair of Boris Kopitovic and Taufik Suparno in the season’s first Eastern Derby at Our Tampines Hub on Saturday.

The 24-year-old Japanese knows that together with his backline, they will have to complement goalkeeper Zaiful Nizam well if the Eagles are to keep a clean sheet and boost their hopes of returning to winning ways after collecting just one point from the last two matches.

“Our backline has been dealing with numerous attacking threats, so tomorrow’s game is no exception,” said Sakuma, who has featured full 90 minutes in all the first three matches to date.

“It’s always tough being a defender, but I love the challenge. Going up against formidable opponents will bring out the best in me, and I believe the same can be said for the rest of my teammates too.

The Stags frontmen have an impressive record of seven goals between them- four of which coming from their Montenegrin hotshot, making him the joint-second top scorer in the AIA Singapore Premier League.

These stats have underlined Kopitovic and Taufik’s status as one of the deadliest strike forces in the league. And they will be the ones Sakuma and his fellow defenders need to keep their close eyes on throughout the 90 minutes. 

The Eagles will also have to nullify any potential threat posed by their sharp-passing playmaker Kyoga Nakamura, who has accounted for four of his team’s assists.

While Geylang International managed a 1-1 draw in their last visit to Tanjong Pagar before the international break, the Stags went on a scoring spree to thump Hougang United 7-1, with Kopitovic and Taufik bagging a hat-trick and a brace, respectively.

“Tampines has scored seven goals in their last match, but I don’t see why past results will count for anything,” said Sakuma.

If the outcome of the recent five derbies since 2020 are anything to go by, expect the battle to be tightly contested again, as three of them have ended up in 1-1 draws.

But the momentum will be with Noor Ali charges as they came away with a 3-1 win the last time they hosted Tampines back in August last year.

Said Head Coach Noor: “We have a lot of respect for Tampines. The way they managed their first three points at Hougang speaks volumes about what they are capable of.

“But we are ready to take them on. As for us, the results from the last two matches didn’t hurt our confidence at all. 

“I can see that my boys work very hard to improve themselves from one game after another and play to our philosophy. This is what our fans expect from us too.

“I think we have also been creating many chances that make winning games possible. We just need to improve on the consistency, and I have no doubt my boys have what it takes to do so.”