SINGAPORE: The Singapore national football team faces a daunting task as they take on Vietnam in the second leg of the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup semi-finals in Hanoi on Sunday, Dec 29, at the Viet Tri Stadium in the Phu Toc province.
Trailing 2-0 from the first leg, the Lions must conjure up a comeback to overturn the deficit and book their spot in the final.
The second leg match will be played at 9 pm (Singapore time). Fans can watch the match live on MeWATCH, and several public venues organised by the People’s Association and HomeTeamNS (Balestier, Bedok Reservoir and Khatib).
The eleven community clubs and centres that will be hosting watch parties are; Buangkok CC, Heartbeat @ Bedok, Jurong Spring CC, Kaki Bukit CC, Keat Hong CC, Pek Kio CC, Radin Mas CC, Our Tampines Hub, One Punggol, Wisma Geylang Serai, and Tampines West CC.
With the away-goals rule not applicable in the competition, Tsutomu Ogura’s team faces a straightforward yet daunting task: winning outright on aggregate to advance. Even a 3-1 win in normal time would only force the match into extra-time.
Although the Singapore team was left heartbroken with two goals by Vietnam in the dying minutes of the first leg of the first match, head coach Ogura exuded confidence and determination during the pre-match media conference on Friday.
The Japanese coach emphasized that his players are not in Hanoi for sightseeing but rather as a team on a mission against their opponents.
“Both the experienced and younger players carry the same energy – they want to rewrite history for Singapore football. We are not coming to Hanoi as tourists – we are here to focus on our football.” declared Singapore head coach Ogura.
Ogura acknowledged the strength of the Vietnamese side but stressed the importance of unity and collective effort: “Vietnam has good players, and they are tough opponents as a team. We must attack and defend as a unit to protect against their entire team.”
Naturalised player Kyoga Nakamura, who missed the first leg due to suspension, echoed Ogura’s sentiments.
“After the game, nobody was happy – we were all angry and frustrated because we lost the game in Singapore. But this is a good thing for us as this energy will help us to change something on the pitch,” said the BG Tampines Rovers midfielder.
Despite the seemingly insurmountable task, Ogura remains optimistic. “We need the goals tomorrow (Saturday), but it was also the same case in the first leg. There are 90 minutes plus added time to be played, so maybe we can score the three goals that will help us qualify for the final.”
As Singapore prepares to face the Vietnamese and end their 26-year winless streak against their opponents, the players will draw inspiration from their coach’s words:
“We must remember that the tie is only finished when the 90 minutes plus additional time is over. That is very important.”
The winner of this match will face either the Philippines or Thailand in the final of the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup. Thailand was delivered a shocking 2-1 defeat by the Philippines on Dec 27 in the first leg of their semi-final tie at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila.
Thailand and the Philippines will play their semi-final second-leg match on Monday, Dec 30. The final of the competition will also be played over two-leg on Jan 2 and 5.