Football
Kenneth Tan 9y

S.League: Sherif El-Masri wary of Protectors' lethal striker Ken Ilso

Courts Young Lions' Sherif El-Masri reckons Home United's Danish forward Ken Ilso is the man to watch when the two teams clash in the Great Eastern Yeo's S.League on Thursday night at Jalan Besar Stadium.

The Canadian forward himself, has been in good form, helping the Young Lions to collect 11 points since July, lifting them off the foot of the table in the process.

"I've been fairly happy with my form since coming back, I picked up a small injury and missed a couple of games, but other than that, I've been quite pleased with how I'm playing, but there is always room for improvement." said El-Masri.

Up against Home United, the Young Lions will be seeking to bounce back from a 2-0 away loss to Brunei DPMM last week.

The Protectors are on a six-match unbeaten run, but have become the draw specialists in the league, with five of their last six games, seeing them share a point with their opponents.

Despite the fact that they seem not to be able to pick up maximum points in their league outings, El-Masri is still urging his teammates to keep an eye on Home's dangerous forward Ilso, if they are to grab their fifth win of the season.

He said: "Brunei was a tough game, they outplayed us and it was hard to break them down defensively.

"Having said that, we always go into matches aiming for three points, so against Home United, we'll have the same mentality, but we have to watch out for their danger player, Ilso who can cause some damage if given space."

The last time the two teams met back in April this year, a 88th minute goal by Shamil Sharif at the Yishun Stadium, secured the Young Lions' first win in the league, and since then, interim coach Juergen Raab has taken his team to three wins, three losses and two draws.

A newfound confidence in the U23 team, has been credited to the return of foreign duo Jordan Webb and El-Masri, but the latter refuted that notion, and heaped praise on his team of fighters and their coach.

"I've heard people say it's (CYL's resurgence) is because of the foreigners (returning to the team), but I think it is the entire team as a whole who have made that happen and stepped up their game." added El-Masri. 

"Coach Raab's new playing style also helped play a big part, giving us players a lot of confidence and motivation. That has taken a lot of our nerves away, not to mention, lift the morale of the whole team."

Another win for the Young Lions on Thursday could open up a six-point gap between them and bottom-dwellers Geylang International, while Home United need to start turning their draws into victories, if Philippe Aw harbours any intentions of a top-four finish.

Courts Young Lions Probable Lineup: Syazwan Buhari (GK)(C), Fadli Kamis, M. Anumanthan, Sheikh Abdul Hadi, Farhan Rahmat, Ammirul Emran, Afiq Noor, Suria Prakash, Nur Na'iim Ishak, Sherif El-Masri, Jordan Webb

Home United Probable Lineup: Shahril Jantan (GK), Ang Zhiwei, R. Aravin, Sirina Camara, Juma'at Jantan, Yasir Hanapi,. Azhar Sairudin, Stanely Ng , Kamel Ramdani, Ambroise Begue, Ken Ilso

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