Something to Prove: Kaya v Mendiola
Kaya FC-Iloilo, now with one hand onto the semi-finals berth, face one of the tougher teams in the Philippines Football League in Mendiola FC 1991. Despite being the favorites to win the Copa, Mendiola is definitely one of the teams who can pull the rug from under.
Kaya started off on the better stride as they kept the early possession and made good touches in the opposition's third. It did lead to some chances, with free kicks and nicely placed passes put near the box. But it had to take ten minutes before the Mendiola goal was breached.
Arnel Amita found the lone striker, Jovin Bedic, in a good position up front. The Kaya veteran would make it look easy as his first touch was enough to put himself in front of Mendiola keeper Asong. Bedic only had to put the ball away from the keeper's reach and into the goal.
Kaya showed that they are the team in the ascendency as they kept their foot on the gas, piling continuous pressure onto the challengers. Mendiola did have their own moments on the counter, but none had been as decisive enough to turn the game around so far.
No shortage of goals as on the 34th minute, Bedic found the net again after Daizo Horikoshi threaded a ball into the path of the Ilonggo, but not before trying to work his way around Semblante who made contact in front of goal. The Kaya skipper would make no mistake in tapping that ball in for his brace.
39th minute Ashley made a poor pass from his own box into the path of Ryo Fujii who took a shot from range. Fujii had already been involved with the play that lead to an earlier goal. This puts Mendiola down with a three-goal deficit.
This strong Kaya performance was carried all the way to the half-time whistle, leaving the score 3-0 for Kaya at the break.
Minutes after the break, Asong had to commit to a charge on the 49th minute, taking the ball from Kaya and preventing what could've been an additional goal early into the restart.
Mendiola's defense did start looking better after the break as they have been able to stop most of Kaya's plays. But they have been getting a bit more physical, which shows a bit of their determination. Mendiola mainstay, Hamed Hajimahdi, was on the receiving end of a referee warning as they try harder at stopping they Kaya offense.
Kaya has started to show a bit of a decrease in pace as they've already made quite a cushion. Kaya started playing the ball slower, working possession from the back. But this didn't deter Mendiola who kept trying to get through, but couldn't keep that possession in their opponent's final third.
A fourth goal was added in 62nd minute when Horikoshi was in a good spot to put a great pass ahead of Kenshiro Daniels. Asong had to dash off his line, but it proved fatal as it allowed Daniels to put the ball into the net with ease.
Despite being four goals ahead, Kaya continues the search for more goals as they continue to put in good balls into the box and spaces. They managed to rack up one more goal when Daizo Horikoshi managed to dribble past Ashley, leaving the open space at the edge of the box. The score now stands 5-nil in the 82nd minute.
The closing stages was all Kaya as they continued to show the gulf in class between both teams. And to top the icing on the cake, a cross from a corner kick was put into a good spot into the box, finding a well positioned Carlyle Mitchell who headed the ball into the back of the net for yet another goal. The game ends Kaya FC-Iloilo 6, Mendiola FC 1991 nil.
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