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| For Global gaffer Toshiaki Imai (left), Tuesday's win over Magwe was a good start to their campaign, yet there are some things that they need to improve. |
MANILA -- Global have won their AFC Cup opener against Magwe last Tuesday, but for the three-time UFL champs, there is a necessity to improve, especially given the group that they have just to get to the knockout stages.
This was shared by manager Toshiaki Imai and centre-back Wesley Dos Santos when they talked to the footballing press after the match in nearby Ninoy Aquino Stadium, in which they will embark on a tour across peninsular Southeast Asia in a fortnight, with Cambodia's Boeung Ket Angkor their first visit on March 7, followed by their trip to 2015 holders Johor Darul Ta'zim and the fearful Larkin Stadium a week later.
"You hope for more goals. We do," the Japanese briefly described their 1-0 win, in which they took ten total shots, but only two of them came on target with one of those led to Misagh Bahadoran's lone winner in the 39th minute.
"Today was a good game that we played, but I think that we are more calm in front of goal, and hopefully the next game will be better," the Brazilian said thru his teammate Darryl Roberts who serves as his translator.
When asked about his adjustment from his native Brazil to the Philippines, one thing that caught his attention was the attendance during that match, in which only 456 have turned up compared to five-figure crowds in his home country.
"When the team plays well, more people will come to the game. Hopefully we will get more fans into the game," Dos Santos noticed.
With the tough away schedule ahead for them, Imai-san is leaving no stone unturned for his men, especially that only the group F winner will progress to the knockout stage.
"I think maybe we should show our good form away from home," the Japanese concluded.
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