Buriram United FC coach Mark Jackson praised his players’ resilience after the ASEAN Club Championship Shopee Cup™ title holders booked their place in the 2025/26 final on Wednesday with a tense extra-time victory over Johor Darul Ta’zim FC.
Shopee Star of the Match Kingsley Schindler scored the tie-winning goal in the eighth minute of extra-time as the Thai League 1 champions eked out a 4-3 aggregate win over the Malaysian side having thrown away a 3-1 first leg lead at Buriram Stadium.
Bérgson da Silva’s penalty deep into first half stoppage time after a foul by goalkeeper Neil Etheridge gave JDT a lifeline and Xisco Muñoz’s side took the game into extra-time when Marcos Guilherme hit a 62nd minute equaliser to ramp up the tension.
But Schindler’s strike took Buriram United into a second consecutive final despite finishing the match with nine players after both Guilherme Bissoli and Goran Čaušić were dismissed in the dying minutes.
“Honestly, not much went wrong in the first half,” said Jackson, who replaced last season’s title-winning coach Osmar Loss at the helm in November. “Apart from the mistake that led to the goal, I thought we controlled the game well, especially out of possession.
“The shape of the team was excellent and we were happy with that aspect of the game.
“Of course, conceding just before half-time can be damaging, but I told the players that no game is won at half-time. I have been with this group for a while now and I know they have resilience because we have been in these situations before.
“The character shown by the players tonight was outstanding.”
Buriram United will take on another Malaysian opponent in the decider after Selangor FC defeated Nam Định FC 4-1 on aggregate in the other semi-final tie and do so without the services of Bissoli, the club’s leading scoring in the Shopee Cup™ with six goals so far, and the influential Čaušic.
“Of course it is disappointing because they are two influential players for the team,” Jackson said of the pair’s absence. “Losing players like that is a massive loss, but as a group we will find a way. That is why we have a squad and it also creates opportunities for other players.”
JDT coach Muñoz was left to reflect on his side’s exit, which came despite picking up the club’s first win over Buriram United in six meetings between the burgeoning rivals.
“From the opening minutes, we tried to change the result and I am proud of the effort the players showed,” said the Spaniard. “It was also our first win here, which is another positive for us.
“At the same time, we need to learn from both matches because it was difficult for us after the result from the first leg at home. We cannot put ourselves in that type of situation.
“However, I want to focus on the positive things. We reached the semi-finals of this competition, we won the (Malaysian) league and we made history in the AFC Champions League Elite (by qualifying for the quarter-finals for the first time).
“These experiences are important for us to continue learning and improving because we are a big club with big ambitions. I promise we will continue working even harder next season and try to reach the final.”
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