JDT underline remarkable rise with impressive Chelsea draw image
Johor Darul Ta'zim underlined their growing reputation in world football by holding Premier League side Chelsea to a 3-3 draw in an entertaining friendly at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium.
The Malaysian champions took the lead after 14 minutes when captain Arif Aiman Hanapi converted following good work from Brazilian winger Marcus Guilherme.
Chelsea responded before half-time through Liam Delap, who won and converted a penalty after being brought down inside the area by JDT defender Kevin Medina.
The visitors went ahead for the first time shortly after the hour mark, with Delap again scoring from the penalty spot in the 62nd minute.
JDT, however, responded almost immediately.
Spanish wing-back Oscar Arribas equalised three minutes later before Brazilian striker Bergson Da Silva struck in the 86th minute to put the hosts within sight of a memorable victory against the two-time European champions.
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Chelsea eventually avoided defeat in the closing stages when Antonio Glauder turned the ball into his own net to make it 3-3.
What is the difference in budgets between Chelsea and JDT?
Despite being a pre-season friendly, the result represented another significant moment in JDT's development under owner HRH Tunku Ismail.
The financial gulf between the two clubs provides further context to the performance. Chelsea operate with a playing and recruitment budget running into hundreds of millions of pounds, while JDT's budget is understood to be around £11m — a fraction of that available to the Premier League club.
HRH Tunku Ismail has overseen a major transformation of JDT since becoming involved with the club, investing heavily in infrastructure, facilities, recruitment and professional standards.
That project has resulted in sustained domestic dominance as well as growing ambitions on the continental and international stage, with the visit of Chelsea providing another opportunity for JDT to measure themselves against elite European opposition.
JDT are also now just one league match away from potentially establishing a new world record for the longest unbeaten run in top-flight league football, having gone more than 100 domestic league matches without defeat.
The draw against Chelsea therefore comes at a significant moment for a club which has increasingly looked beyond Malaysia in its ambitions.
For JDT, competing on level terms with a Premier League side possessing vastly greater financial resources will be viewed as further evidence of the progress made under HRH Tunku Ismail.
Chelsea will now return to London before facing Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, 15 August in their final pre-season match.