KUALA LUMPUR: Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT) are now focused on continental success because they are "streets ahead" of domestic rivals like Selangor, said chief operating officer Alistair Edwards.
The Australian said the Southern Tigers are reshaping Southeast Asian football when asked about JDT's standard compared to other local clubs.
"Generally, we're just kind of streets ahead," Edwards told British content creator Emmanuel Brown.
"That's why we get the unbeaten run. That's why I love the Asian Champions League (ACLE) and the Shopee Cup (Asean Club Championship), because you're playing against top Asian teams."
Edwards said JDT have long measured themselves against Asia's elite rather than M-League opponents.
"When we play in the Champions League, we beat the Korean champions, we beat the Japanese champions, and we're playing at this level.
"Playing in the Asian Champions League, it's the top level... it's like the (UEFA) Champions League," he said.
Since their restructuring in 2013, JDT have won 10 consecutive Super League titles, achieved multiple domestic quadruple sweeps, and became the first Southeast Asian club to win the AFC Cup in 2015.
Meanwhile, JDT chief executive officer Luis Garcia said the team's intensity in the domestic league is driven directly by club owner and Regent of Johor, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim.
"One of the first sentences that the boss told me when I met him is, 'I want to fall in love with the football that I see, the football of my team.' And that's what we try to do," Garcia said.
"We like to have really aggressive football, high pressure, players who have ability with the ball, a lot of movement, running through channels and creating a lot of options.
"That's what His Royal Highness wants, and we are trying to do it in every game."
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