Singapore Newspaper: 'Courageous Draw Against Vietnam National Team'

Straits Times assesses that Singapore was the underdog and played an outstanding match to snatch a point at My Dinh Stadium.

Accordingly, the Singapore national team continues to lead Group A of the ASEAN Championship after holding the hosts and defending champions Vietnam to a 0-0 draw at My Dinh Stadium on the evening of July 31.

Despite being ranked lower at 148th in the world, Singapore played evenly against Vietnam (ranked 99th by FIFA) to secure a valuable point. After three matches, the "Lions" have 7 points thanks to victories over Cambodia (2-1), Timor-Leste (2-0), and the draw with Vietnam.

In the other match on July 31, Indonesia defeated Timor-Leste 3-0 to move up to second place with 6 points from two games. Vietnam is third with 4 points after two matches.

Singapore will conclude the group stage by hosting Indonesia at Jalan Besar Stadium on August 7. The island nation will secure a spot in the semifinals if they beat Indonesia.

Coach Gavin Lee expressed satisfaction with his players' performance, though he regretted not securing all three points.

"Many aspects of the match were very positive. But we came here to win, and that didn't happen, so the team still needs to take another step forward. Nevertheless, I am very proud of the players' performance and the fans who traveled to Vietnam—they fully deserved to witness it.

Vietnam is a very good benchmark for our progress because they also participated in the Asian Cup. For most of the match, we were on par, creating several good chances that normally would have resulted in goals. The fact that we are not satisfied with just a draw is also proof of the team's improvement. There is much to be happy and proud about, but we still wanted the three points."

Compared to the lineup that beat Timor-Leste 2-0 on July 27, Singapore made three changes in the starting eleven, with Ryhan Stewart, Jacob Mahler, and Shawal Anuar starting in place of Nur Adam Abdullah, Irfan Fandi, and Ilhan Fandi.

On the opposite side, Coach Kim Sang Sik kept the same lineup that had beaten Timor-Leste 7-0. Vietnam started proactively and applied constant pressure after a heavy downpour at My Dinh Stadium.

Full-back Truong Tien Anh was Vietnam's most dangerous attacking threat in the first half. In the 18th minute, he unleashed a powerful long-range shot that forced goalkeeper Izwan Mahbud to make a save.

Despite the passionate support of over 31,500 spectators with horns, drums, and familiar songs, Vietnam could not find the opening goal.

Nguyen Thanh Chung headed just wide, while Coach Kim Sang Sik held his head in regret on the sideline. Nguyen Hoang Duc's fierce shot then beat Izwan Mahbud but struck the crossbar.

Despite being inferior in possession and chances created, Singapore remained calm, organized a tight defense, and forced Vietnam mostly to shoot from distance.

In the 41st minute, Coach Kim Sang Sik decided to substitute the lackluster Nguyen Dinh Bac for Geovane Magno.

The second-half script did not change much. Vietnam continued to attack, while Singapore defended stubbornly. Geovane Magno also had a shot that hit the crossbar.

However, Singapore also showed ambition by bringing on Ilhan Fandi, creating several dangerous situations and earning repeated corners.

In the 77th minute, the visitors almost ended a 28-year winless streak against Vietnam when Jacob Mahler volleyed with his left foot from a Kyoga Nakamura free kick, but Patrick Le cleared the ball off the goal line. In the 84th minute, Shawal Anuar tested the Vietnam goalkeeper again.

Singapore's solid defense prevented the defending champions, who had been on a 19-match unbeaten run, from creating clear chances in the final minutes. Substitute center-back Irfan Fandi celebrated a crucial clearance as if he had scored, as Singapore earned another encouraging result.

Center-back Lionel Tan believes the Singapore team is maturing with each match.

"I think the whole team played a very good match, from the 11 starters to those who came off the bench.

We played as a team, as one united block. In this tournament, we always enter every match with the goal of winning and getting three points. Today, we brought home one point from Vietnam.

Vietnam is a very strong team, and we fought hard. I think both teams deserved a point."

Captain Hariss Harun, who was named Man of the Match after marshaling the defense to neutralize the trio of naturalized players Rafaelson (Xuan Son), Hendrio, and Geovane Magno, shared:

"We made it difficult for the opponent and posed many questions for them. That's a positive sign.

We came here with the aim of achieving something, the whole team stuck to the plan and did it. However, Singapore has not yet secured a semifinal spot, so we will go back, recover, stay focused, and prepare for the match against Indonesia."