Negeri Sembilan FC showed resilience and character to come from behind and secure a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Kuala Lumpur City FC in a dramatic Super League encounter at the Kuala Lumpur Football Stadium last night.

The match had everything — three penalties, two red cards, VAR drama and late tension — as both teams battled fiercely until the final whistle.

Negeri Sembilan made the perfect start in the 16th minute when the referee awarded a penalty after KL City goalkeeper Quincy Kammeraad brought down import forward Joseph Esso inside the box.

Captain Ahmad Khuzaimi Piee stepped up to take the spot-kick. Although his initial attempt was saved by Kammeraad, Khuzaimi reacted quickest to the rebound and fired home to give the Jang squad an early 1-0 lead.

KL City responded strongly just nine minutes later. Referee Razlan Joffri Ali pointed to the spot after a VAR review found that Kpah Sherman’s effort had struck Khuzaimi’s hand inside the penalty area.

Victor Ruiz made no mistake from the penalty spot, calmly beating the Negeri Sembilan goalkeeper to level the score at 1-1.

The momentum then shifted in favour of the home side, and Nicolao Cardoso completed KL City’s turnaround in the 38th minute with a composed finish to put the City Boys 2-1 ahead before half-time.

However, Negeri Sembilan refused to give in.

With KL City seemingly heading towards victory, the match took another twist in the 81st minute when the visitors were awarded a second penalty after Giancarlo Gallifuoco was adjudged to have fouled Esso inside the box.

Oday Kharroub kept his composure under pressure and converted the spot-kick to bring Negeri Sembilan level at 2-2, ensuring the Jang squad returned from the capital with a valuable point.

The decision sparked heated protests from the KL City bench, with one of their officials shown a red card. KL City head coach Risto Vidakovic was also sent off a few minutes later and is set to miss their final league fixture against Kuching City at Stadium Negeri this Sunday.

The result leaves KL City in fourth place in the Super League, while Negeri Sembilan will now turn their focus to finishing the campaign strongly in front of their home supporters.

Negeri Sembilan FC will close their Super League season against Kelantan The Real Warriors at Stadium Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Paroi, this Saturday.