Football
Adwaidh Rajan 4y

Johor Darul Ta'zim seek seventh straight Malaysia Super League title when season resumes

Johor Darul Ta'zim coach Benjamin Mora says his side will be gunning for nothing less than a seventh consecutive league title when the 2020 Malaysia Super League season resumes.

Football clubs in Malaysia returned to training on June 15 after a three-month break, signaling the first step toward a return to a campaign halted by the coronavirus pandemic on March 16.

JDT were leading the table after four rounds with 10 points -- two ahead of Perak and four more than last year's runners-up Pahang.

"We are looking forward to giving our best and trying to please all our fans when the season restarts," Mora told ESPN.

"Winning a seventh title in a row is on our to-do list as the top priority and we will try to do whatever that needs to be done and more to get our hands on that trophy.

The Johor-based outfit have won six Super League titles since 2014.

"We were conducting virtual training sessions through video conferencing services like Zoom," Mora said. "They were very well organised and executed by players and staff for around 45 days as we tried to keep energy and fitness levels going for all players."

Clubs have been told to follow strict operating procedures during the first phase of non-contact training that began last week. One of the first things JDT players, coaches and staff did on their first day back was to undergo COVID-19 testing.

"Now, we go back to work and start with a designed plan so that we can return to our training sessions gradually to achieve the best fitness and technical peak of each player and the team as a whole," Mora said. "It will not be easy.

The Football Association of Malaysia has canceled lower division competitions but is looking to have the Super League and second-tier Malaysia Premier League return in September.

The league's usual home-and-away format could be scrapped for a shorter 11-game season that can be completed in less than a month.

"Things look exactly how it can look with all this instability playing in our minds," Mora noted.

"We are all experiencing a phase that is new to football and the world. We don't know when and how the tournament is going to resume, but we have been studying all the options."

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