Singapore coach: 'We didn't come to Vietnam for sightseeing'
Coach Tsutomu Ogura stated that the Singapore team is very determined in the second leg of the semi-final, and did not come to Vietnam for sightseeing.
At noon on December 28th, during the press conference ahead of the second leg of the ASEAN Cup 2024 semi-final, Singapore's coach Tsutomu Ogura stated: "We only arrived in Vietnam yesterday and had our official training session in Viet Tri this afternoon. Nevertheless, Singapore will strive to deliver the best performance possible, although we cannot predict the percentage of victory."
When asked about the percentage of victory against the Vietnamese team, the Japanese strategist said: "We don't know this, and neither does the Vietnamese team."
Regarding Singapore's squad having many older players, coach Tsutomu Ogura shared:
"My squad includes players over 30, and this might be their last tournament, but age doesn't matter to me. All my players have the same energy, whether they're young or experienced. Hanoi is beautiful, but the Singapore team didn't come here to sightsee. And the older, experienced players can bring a lot of value, creating a good team for the return match."
Commenting on striker Nguyen Xuan Son, coach Tsutomu Ogura said that he wasn't overly concerned about any one individual: "In the first leg, Xuan Son only had a few clear chances. I'm not focused on one player but on planning how to counter the entire Vietnamese team, which has many quality players."
"We always face pressure. Vietnamese football fans are very interested and passionate. When I was in Japan, I followed Vietnamese football and noticed its strong development, from the fans to the youth training program. I hope Singaporean football will also experience similar development," emphasized coach Tsutomu Ogura.
"I can't say who I'll pick for the second leg, I can only say that Singapore needs to advance and overturn the 0-2 deficit. In a match, we need to focus and put in effort not just for a minute or two, but for the entire game, including injury time," the Japanese strategist concluded.
The second leg of the 2024 ASEAN Cup semi-final between Vietnam and Singapore will take place at 8 PM on December 29th at Viet Tri Stadium, Phu Tho province.
