Kelantan captain determined to give QPR a friendly match with a competitive edge

Midfield supremo Mohd Badhri Radzi is a man on a mission. The Kelantan captain, fondly known as ‘Piya’ to Red Warrior fans, has the thirst for more glory.

As the inspirational force behind the success of the Kelantan football team, Badhri is now aiming to take on bigger challenges with his team, coached by Bojan Hodak. Kelantan, which won the FA Cup in May and was recently crowned Super League champions, are on a roll.

Leading by example: Kelantan captain Mohd Badhri will be aiming to raise his team’s fighting spirit when they take on Premiership side QPR at Shah Alam stadium on July 20.

Next month, the Red Warriors ready up for the Malaysia Cup challenge while a quarterfinal spot against Iraqi side Arbil in the AFC Cup in September is a massive match.

Before the tough assignments ahead, Kelantan has a glamour match against Premiership side Queen’s Park Rangers at Shah Alam Stadium on July 20.

“The upcoming game with QPR will be my third game against English club sides after meeting Chelsea last year with the national team, and Manchester City reserves in 2009 (a friendly match in Manchester) with the Kelantan squad.

“It will, undeniably, be a very meaningful experience to take on QPR. They have big names like Djibril Cisse, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Bobby Zamora and many others,” said Badhri.

“We are grateful to the top management of KAFA, especially Tan Sri Annuar Musa, for always giving us the opportunity to continue to improve ourselves in football,” he added.

QPR, which is managed by Welshman Mark Hughes and sponsored by Air Asia, have also been beefing up their team ahead of the new Premier League season next month. New signings like Park Ji-Sung, Fabio (on loan), Andy Johnson and Ryan Nelsen will be in the frame for the game against Kelantan.

Badhri reckons his side will be pushed hard by QPR which needs the pre-season practice. “Although my teammates might be a bit exhausted due to the packed schedule throughout the season, I’m convinced that they will put forward their best performance in this match. We are committed to show to everyone that we are in a class of our own,” said Bahdri.

Badhri anticipates a strong turnout from the Kelantan faithful. The game against QPR will start at 9.15pm. “This will be history for Kelantan. Hopefully, the fans can show the world that Kelantan fans are equivalent to the supporters in the Barclays Premier League — fanatical and disciplined,” he added.

Both teams will be conducting a training session in Kota Baru and will meet the fans a day earlier before the clash in Shah Alam. Tickets for the Kelantan v QPR game at Shah Alam Stadium on July 20 range from RM33, RM53 and RM73.

They are available at www.AirAsiaredtix.com or at selected outlets like Rock Corner at The Gardens, Mid Valley (03-2283-4893), Mid Valley (03-2284-1423), KLCC (03-2161-9417), Subang Parade (03-5636-9420), The Curve (03-7729-6313, 1Utama (03-7725-5667) or Victoria Music outlets at Sungei Wang (03-2148-7208), Amcorp (03-7956-0592), Tropicana (03-7722-2955) and BSC (03-2093-1093).

-thestar online.