Singapore Under-23 Men’s Team to face Yemen, Vietnam, and Bangladesh in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers

SINGAPORE: The Singapore Under-23 Men’s National Team is set to play against Yemen, Vietnam, and Bangladesh in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Under-23 Asian Cup Qualifiers. With challenging opponents ahead, head coach Firdaus Kassim encourages the athletes to be strong, disciplined, and show resilience both physically and emotionally as they head to the Sep 3 to 9 tournament in Vietnam.

 

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“What I expect from the team in those matches is to stay disciplined, show resilience in every game, and be competitive in every action. If we can do that consistently, we will give ourselves a good chance to perform well,” the head coach remarked. 

On the team’s preparations for the games

The national squad is heading to Vietnam after playing several friendly matches as part of their preparation. These games helped the team improve on their skills, especially as they fight in the qualifiers. 

On social media, the head coach said the team’s preparations were intense, starting from the selection of the best 23 players to compete in this competition, regardless of their ages. 

 

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“I think expectations for us first and foremost is that we want to be very competitive in every game, and we’re not looking far ahead, we’re taking one game at a time,” Firdaus stated. 

Furthermore, the athletes went to Portugal for a training camp. The U23 players, who are all Singaporeans, played three games there. The Young Lions, who include both Singaporean players and foreign athletes, also played three games. 

Firdaus, who also coaches the Young Lions in the Singapore Premier League, said these matches were significant in the training period of the teams and produced successful results. The coach admitted that through those matches, they gained a clearer picture of both teams in their respective sporting journeys. They also had the benefit of additional staffing support during the preparation period, which helped fine-tune the details of their game. 

“What has impressed me most is the commitment the boys have shown. They have trained with pride and pushed themselves every day, and I can see the development in their mentality as well as their football. They are starting to understand what it means to represent Singapore at this level, and I am confident that these players will deliver performances that our supporters can be proud of,” the coach declared. 

One netizen said the qualifiers would be a great challenge for the team, and he wished the squad good luck. Another netizen is looking forward to watching the first game of the national team. 

 

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All the matches will be streamed on Mediacorp’s meWATCH platform and on Vietnam Football Federation’s official YouTube channel.