Don't underestimate U22 Singapore!
(Baonghean.vn) - Although Singaporean football is not strong in youth training, in the past, Singaporean football has shown that they are the "nemesis" of Vietnamese football in the SEA Games arena.
Before entering the penultimate match of Group B, U22 Singapore had almost lost the chance to win a ticket to the knockout round. However, with nothing left to lose, coach Fandi Ahmad's team still had many potential dangers. If Nguyen Quang Hai and his teammates were careless, the consequences they would have to face would be huge.
It is true that at the present time, U22 Vietnam is rated much higher than the young team from the "lion island". But remember, in football, especially youth football, nothing can be predicted. The team that is rated stronger is not necessarily the one that will win the final victory. Because surprise is always a part of "football".
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| U22 Singapore is in a situation where they have “nothing to lose”. Photo: vietnamnet.vn |
Moreover, the head-to-head record between the representatives of Vietnamese football and Singaporean football at the SEA Games arena is leaning towards the neighboring country. Since the SEA Games men's football for the U23 age group (SEA Games 2001), the team nicknamed "sea lions" has had quite an impressive head-to-head record against the team nicknamed "golden dragons".
According to statistics, there have been 5 clashes between U23 Singapore and U23 Vietnam in the past. At the 2005 SEA Games held in the Philippines, U23 Vietnam with Pham Van Quyen, Le Quoc Vuong, Le Cong Vinh... were in the same group with U23 Singapore. The match between the two teams ended with a score of 2-1 in favor of U23 Vietnam, thanks to Pham Van Quyen's double.
Two years after the 2007 SEA Games in Thailand, once again, U23 Vietnam and U23 Singapore were in the same group. The 3-2 victory helped U23 Singapore pay back the debt owed to U23 Vietnam in the previous SEA Games. Two goals from Phan Thanh Binh and Le Cong Vinh were still not enough to help U23 Vietnam avoid a defeat.
Being eliminated in the semi-finals forced the two teams to meet again in the bronze medal match, and U23 Singapore “crushed” their opponents with an unbelievable score of 5-0. This was the heaviest defeat of U23 Vietnam at the SEA Games. A sad memory for Huynh Quang Thanh, Nguyen Vu Phong, Phan Thanh Binh, Le Cong Vinh, Le Tan Tai…
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| U23 Vietnam players were disappointed after losing 0-1 to U23 Singapore at SEA Games 2013. Photo: hff.vn |
Finally, U23 Vietnam paid off its debt to U23 Singapore, in the semi-final match at the 2009 SEA Games, held in Laos. 4 goals were divided equally between Phan Thanh Binh, Mai Tien Thanh, Chu Ngoc Anh, Nguyen Ngoc Anh, helping U23 Vietnam defeat U23 Singapore with a score of 4-1 and win the right to play in the final match.
The most recent meeting between U23 Vietnam and U23 Singapore was at the 2013 SEA Games, held in Myanmar. With a 0-1 defeat to U23 Singapore and 1-2 defeat to U23 Malaysia, coach Hoang Van Phuc and his team had to leave the tournament right at the group stage. For the first time since the 1995 SEA Games, a representative of Vietnamese football did not make it to the round of 4 strongest teams.
In the last two SEA Games (2015 and 2017), U23 Vietnam and U23 Singapore did not face each other again. Therefore, the 3-2 victory is still leaning towards the young team from the "lion island". That shows that Singapore football is the "nemesis" of Vietnamese football in the SEA Games arena./.
