Just 16 days after they played out to a 2-2 draw at Darul Makmur Stadium, Kedah and Pahang will once again go head to head in Tuesday's Super League match day 11 encounter.
Pahang led twice in that match through Chan Vathanaka and Safuwan Baharudin but was twice pegged back by Kedah as Sandro da Silva grabbed a brace for himself.
Pahang are currently in third place with 18 points, three places better than their opponent Kedah who are in sixth place, with 15 points. With top place Johor Darul Ta'zim entertaining bottom club Negeri Sembilan on Wednesday, neither Pahang nor Kedah can afford to drop points.
"We cannot drop any points because the main mission now is to chase the team at the top of the table as we are now eight points behind Johor Darul Ta'zim. That is why, I hope the players will play to form and not disappoint because we need the three points to continue to challenge," added Dollah in a Berita Harian report.
In this mid-season transfer window, Dollah has moved to shore up his attacking department with the signing of Austin Amutu and Issey Nakajima. Both are expected to start from first whistle against Kedah and Dollah already has a plan how to slot them alongside top scorer Patrick Cruz.
Amutu arrives at the club to replace injured Francis Forkey Doe while Nakajima takes over the emptied slot that came up after the release of an underperforming Vathanaka.
"I'm hopeful that the partnership of the two import strikers will have a big impact given their understanding and ability in front of goal. At the same time, Issey Nakajima will also get his first chance in the midfield that I think will help both Cruz and Amutu."
"These two new players in the team can help push the team to a higher level and better success for the team this season," added Dollah.
In the corresponding fixture last season, Kedah handed Pahang a 4-1 thrashing on their last visit to Alor Setar, back in February 2017.
