Singapore coach: "Our mistake caused us to be punished by the Vietnamese team"

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - Singapore suffered a 0-2 defeat against Vietnam at Jalan Besar Stadium in the first leg of the 2024 AFF Cup semi-final on the evening of December 26th. After the match, coach Tsutomu Ogura expressed regret at conceding a goal in the final minute.

Speaking after the match, Singapore's coach Tsutomu Ogura shared: "This match was very dramatic; it felt like watching a movie. First, there was VAR, then a disallowed goal, then a penalty. In the final minutes of added time, we conceded two goals. Football isn't just a game played for 90 minutes. Both Vietnam and Singapore had opportunities, but Vietnam capitalized on them and punished Singapore. That was the difference in this match." "The fact that the match dragged on for so long, with almost 15 minutes of added time, tired the Singapore players and caused them to lose the necessary concentration. My players also lacked experience in preventing the second goal," the Japanese strategist lamented about the match's outcome.

HLV Singapore: Sai lầm khiến chúng tôi bị tuyển Việt Nam trừng phạt - 1 — Coach Tsutomu Ogura expressed regret over the Singapore team's defeat (Photo: FAS).

Ahead of the second leg on December 29th in Viet Tri ( Phu Tho ), coach Tsutomu Ogura remains optimistic: "The most important thing now is for the players to focus on recovery to regain their fitness for the second leg. The semi-final is still ongoing, it's not over yet. We still have a chance to reach the final." Facing Singapore at Jalan Besar Stadium, the Vietnamese team struggled for most of the first half. The pressure from the home team caused the Vietnamese defense to falter at times, and coach Kim Sang Sik's team nearly conceded a goal. The second half was evenly matched, with Singapore dominating possession at times with over 60%. The highlight of the match came in the 89th minute when Nguyen Xuan Son scored against Singapore, but after a VAR review, the South Korean referee disallowed the goal. Just when it seemed the match would end in a draw, in the 90+8th minute, a miscommunication between the Singapore defender and goalkeeper prevented Xuan Son from scoring, and Hamzah grabbed the ball. Vietnam was awarded a penalty, and Tien Linh beat goalkeeper Mahbud to open the scoring. Two minutes later, from a corner kick, Xuan Son tapped the ball into the net from close range, leaving the Singapore defense with no time to react, securing a 2-0 victory for Vietnam. Coach Kim Sang Sik's team now holds a significant advantage going into the second leg of the semi-final on December 29th at Viet Tri Stadium (Phu Tho).