LIVE Commentary: Singapore Selection v Atletico Madrid

Live Commentary
Wong Yang - reporting from home
Oliver Gui, Ervin Ang - LIVE from the Jalan Besar Stadium
Singapore Selection 0-2 Atletico Madrid (FULL TIME)
Message from Editor: This is the first time FootballMania has reporters on the ground, and we would like to take this opportunity to thank all who have followed our LIVE commentary and all whom have been supporting us throughout this remarkable journey. This is without a doubt a huge milestone in our chase for greater reporting of football. We shall, as always, continue to write about Football, from Our Perspective. It has  been Wong Yang with the LIVE feed here,  and Oliver Gui and Ervin Ang at the Jalan Besar Stadium providing pictures and reports

FULL-TIME: An entertaining match. Singapore gave a strong performance in the early minutes, and presented the Spanish champions with many challenges  and created decent opportunities to score. Then, it was Atletico who began to dominate. Played harder and broke the Singapore defence at times, with  the 1st goal from Garcia. After the break, both teams passed around. There  was less energy compared to the first  half even though both teams made some changes. That all transformed when  Atletico made 7 more  changes towards the 60th minute. Frustration and anger erupted when Hamzah brought down Falcao and Gabi shoved Hamzah, only to  be jeered by an  immature group of  Singapore fans for the rest of the game. Further hard tackles caused the  players' temper to flare at times, but what was most evident was the jeering whenever Gabi touched the ball. It was definitely a misbehaviour in what is to be a positive event. Still, it was a match  full of promise that did live up to most expectations. There were wonderful chances on both sides, and sparks of talent from players  both young and old. This partnership will be a great stepping stone for Singapore football. Unlike when Liverpool made their trip to Singapore, it seemed that the fans leaned towards the Singapore Selection with their support instead of with the visiting champions. It's a good sign, but the booing was definitely unacceptable.  This is yet another call from the FAS to stand behind Singapore football. With the recent AFF Suzuki Cup victory, and the LionsXII sublime performance in the Malaysia Super League, this is an even greater boost.

The second goal

92min - Hariss Harun gets the last chance of the game with a corner that  eventually falls to  his feet. But his shot goes way over the goal post.
91min - Almost a goal for Singapore! Ahmad Latiff powerful strike hits the crossbar! Brilliant  effort! 
91min - Indra sends a terrific ball to Duric but the keeper collects it in time.
91min - Great defending by the Singapore backline, stopping the pacey Turan.
90min - 2 minutes of added time. 
89min - Singapore with the free-kick. Aleksandar Duric's free-kick goes over the crossbar, decent effort.
88min - Hassan Sunny makes yet another amazing save to deny Costa of his second goal.
86min - 2nd goal! Gabi sends the ball to the right, and the Singapore defence cannot clear a cross from the right wing. Costa takes advantage of a tap from his teammate and puts it in for Atletico's second.
84min - Singapore have to push up the pitch more if they want to look for an equaliser.

(photo by FootballMania)

vforcing  Turan to push it to Suarez. Still, the Singapore defence blocks the shot.
81min - Baihakki Khaizan comes off for Afiq Yunos.
80min - Singapore preventing Falcao from moving around with the ball too much, good performance.
79min - We're approaching the final 10 minutes of the game.
77min - Falcao's touch really has been the closest of the chances both teams have created in the second half. Was an amazing save by Sunny.
76min - Singapore  on the attack. The ball eventually falls to Ahmad Latiff, who takes a shot  on the goal, but his low drive is stopped. 
75min - Faris Ramli full of energy, running for every loose ball.

74min - Powerful strike by Indra Shahdan, but it flies straight to Asenjo.
73min - Indra seems  to be the one to take the free-kick. Cheers of "Singapore! Singapore!" from the stands.

Credits: SuperSportsArena

73min - Before the free kick, Hafiz Sujad is brought on for Safuwan Bahrudin.
72min - Indra tries to do too much with the ball, and is brought down before he can  even  shoot. Free-kick to Singapore.
70min - Suarez sends a nice ball down to the right wing. Turan receives the ball on the wing, drills a cross to Falcao. The highly-rated Falcao shoots, but Hassan Sunny makes a remarkable save to deny him of  a goal.
69min - Nice ball from Gabi but Costa is unable to score. He had made a good first touch.
68min - Kaplan coming off for Faris Ramli to make an appearance.
67min - Singapore showed great defence there, reacting to the problems posed by the attacking Atletico players. Falcao spicing things up a little.
65min - Gabi, still facing "Boos" from the crowd, searches for Costa but it's too far out. It seems they won't let  Gabi off. Ervin, sitting in the stands, calls it "disgusting booing". Oliver labelling the jeering, "immature."
63min - Tempers flare up after Sulaiman makes a double-footed challenge on Arda.No cards given though, and Atletico are rewarded with the free-kick.
62min - The crowd is unhappy with Gabi for his earlier shove on  Hamzah. "Boos" sound whenever he touches the ball. 59min - Just a few seconds after Falcao comes on, he collides with Hamzah. Hamzah  is given a yellow card. Atletico players aren't happy about the challenge. Gabi is also given a yellow card for arguing with  the referee and shoving Hamzah.
58min - Atletico making 7 changes now, the Number 9 everyone has been  waiting for has come on. Falcao is now on the pitch! His name is announced and the crowd reacts with loud cheer.
57min - Aleksandar Duric, so close! He uses his height to head a great ball towards goal but Asenjo is able to hit it away.
56min - Duric on the left, sends a cross over to Fazrul Nawaz but Nawaz couldn't head it well towards goal. Duric's cross was at a difficult angle to  head, good try though.
54min  - Kaplan is waved offside by the linesman. Kaplan has been hungry for the ball, doing well.

Players lining up at the start of the game (photo by FootballMania)

52min - Aleksandar Duric will be looking to use his  height to even things out during set-pieces against the bigger-sized Spanish players.
51min - The speedy Rodriguez gets past Sulaiman, and passes it to Adrian, but Adrian's shot is off target.
49min - Calls of "Lions All The Way" from the crowd.  Encouraging to see that, but this ain't the Lions, even when there are Singapore internationals in the team. 
47min - Fazrul Nawaz is caught offside after trying to chase down a nice long ball.
47min - Oliver Torres takes the first corner of the 2nd half, but the corner leads to nothing.
46min - Asenjo has come on for Courtois, Cisma for Pulido. Ahmad Latiff on for Isa Halim, Hariss Harun on for Mustafic. Finally, Hariss Harun. Indra has also come on for Zerka. Nawaz for Sharil Ishak. Sunny for Mahbud. Sulaiman on for Bennett.
Half Time - Singapore is about to get the second half underway. The Singapore Selection having a team huddle while the Atletico players seem  relaxed on the other end.

45min - HALF TIME Review

Wong Yang: Fantastic  energy from the Singapore Selection at the start of the match. Singapore attacked and battled hard for the ball, with an impressive Kaplan troubling the Atletico players to create several chances. Sharil Ishak, as always, made great passes, searching for teammates, but the Singapore side were still unable to convert with a reliable Courtois in goal. Atletico began to push further and dominated a little more in the last 15-20 minutes of the first-half. Not a full-strength Atletico side, they are still able to present a tough obstacle to the Singapore Selection.

Oliver Gui: Singapore have been strong defensively, clearing long balls when Atletico where on the counter  attack. Meanwhile, Atletico have done well to control possession, but failed to create a chance that could split the defence and were unable to convert the opportunities made by Niguez and co.


Ervin Ang: Garcia finding himself in goal scoring positions but unable to get involved, while Niguez is making good runs to create wonderful chances for his teammates.  Insua has been solid at the back, crafting good crosses down the wings, with the one leading to the opening goal by Garcia.

The Goal

44min - Oliver Torres sends in a brilliant cross but Camara is there to intercept it. Zerka collects it on the right and shoots for his first chance of the game but it's not good enough to get pass the safe hands of Courtois.
43min - Half-time approaching. Fans will be hoping to  see Falcao come off the bench. His has been what they were looking forward to, anyway.
42min - Ervin says, "Saul Niguez displaying sparks of talent, he's certainly one for the future. Performing like how Coutinho is at Liverpool."
40min - Pretty exciting first-half so far, both teams comfortable with possession, playing solid football.
38min - Cristian Rodrgiuez was hoping to win a penalty after stumbling in the box, but he's not rewarded one. Noh Rahman had made a fair challenge.
36min - Singapore having to clear the ball desperately now and lack the energy they presented in the first 10 minutes, but still fighting hard.
35min - One-two  between Garcia and Adrian sends Garcia into the box and he sends the ball into  the back of the net, but he is ruled off-side. Remarkable try, though.
33min - Zerka almost  had a chance to  break free and get a one on one but Diaz outpaces him to the ball and muscles him away. Good defending.

Izwan Mahbud takes the goal kick.

31min - Rodriguez is not fast enough, Daniel  Bennett prevents him from getting the ball near the corner of the pitch. Goal-kick to Singapore Selection.
30min - Atletico suddenly finding more ways to break the Singapore defence. Oliver Gui reports, "Amazing scenes here  at the Jalan Besar Stadium".
29min - Nice play by Insua gives way to a Raul Garcia goal! 1-0 to Atletico  Madrid!!!!!!
28min - Safuwan makes a crucial touch  to send an Oliver Torres cross out of danger.
27min - Baihakki Khaizan challenges Adrian. Atletico Madrid is given the free-kick.
24min - Oliver Torres shows great vision, sending a cross to Tiago outside the box but Noh Rahman makes a good deflection.
23min - Another corner for Singapore Selection. Sharil Ishak sends a powerful ball that  no Singapore player is able to get a touch on.
21min - Courtois makes an excellent save! It was yet another chance for the Singapore side, after  Sharil Ishak chests the long ball well into the penalty box, but takes one too many touches. The rebound is received and a Singapore player drives it towards goal but Courtois moves up the block the drive. Great save!
20min - Tiago makes a hard challenge on Isa Halim, who is receiving treatment.
17min - Singapore really performing well in terms of creating chances. Question is, will they be able to last the whole game? Certainly their Spanish opponents have better stamina, but the weather would prove to be a factor.
14min - Pulido on the ground after a collision. Thankfully, he's able to stand up, carries on.
13min - Adrian drills a shot towards goal but Izwan Mahbud palms the ball away.
13min - Assistant editor Ervin comments that Adrian has not been  receiving enough support, while Saul Niguez has been fantastic.
13min - Oliver Torres plays a one-two with Adrian, breaks the Singapore defence but a confident move by  Izwan  Mahbud keeps Singapore safe.
12min - Insua takes a shot on goal from downtown.  Izwan Mahbud catches it with ease.
10min - Singapore Selection working hard to battle the Spanish King's Cup Champions. There's a really hyped-up crowd at the Jalan Besar Stadium.
8min - Kaplan steals the ball from Oliver Torres to cheers from the crowd, then  takes a shot after getting the ball back but it's pushed away by Courtois. Good effort by Kaplan.
7min - Sharil Ishak takes a curling free-kick, easily caught by goalkeeper Courtois.
6min - Camara had a chance to grab the opening goal after an excellent ball from Sharil Ishak but the ball was going a little too fast for Camara to time the shot  well.
5min - Singapore on the break. But Kaplan's pass to Sharil Ishak is intercepted by Tiago.
4min - Atletico Madrid passing the ball around, keeping possession. Daniel Bennett clears a searching cross.
1min - Singapore win a corner thanks to Kaplan. But the result is a wasted corner. 
1min - Oliver Torres and Adrian to kick-off for Atletico Madrid!
0min - Commentator at Jalan Besar Stadium announces that the Peter Lim foundation has raised $756,143 for the Singapore National Olympic Council.

President Peter Lim being  introduced to the Atletico Madrid players (SuperSportsArena)

0min - Teams walking out now. Singapore Selection in red and white, Atletico Madrid in grey and black stripes. President Tony Tan meeting the players.
0min - No Hariss Harun in the starting line-up?
0min - Atletico Madrid Line-Up: Tiago (C), Thibaut Courtois (GK), Adrian Lopez, Raul Garcia, Cristian Rodriguez, Jorge Pulido, Cata Diaz, Emiliano Insua, Javier Manquilo, Saul Niguez, Oliver Torres
0min - Singapore Line-Up: Shahril Ishak (C), Izwan Mahbud (GK), Isa Halim, Baihakki Khaizan, Noh Rahman, Sirina Camara, Mustafic Fahrudin, Safuwan Bahrudin, Daniel Bennett, Jozef Kaplan, Mosef Zerka
0min - Tiago will be captain for Atletico Madrid. A few more minutes to kick-off!

Warm-up

0min - Certainly an exciting week for Singapore football. This partnership with Atletico Madrid should be a fruitful one. Good to see Singaporeans carrying Singapore scarfs and flags too.
0min - Line-ups to be announced soon! The squad list for the Singapore Selection side can be viewed below. We shall see if Falcao is included in the starting XI.
0min - Tune in the Starhub Cable TV Supersports Arena (Ch 201) to catch the match from home!
0min - Our assistant editors Oliver Gui and Ervin Ang are LIVE at the Jalan Besar stadium! Wong Yang here, providing you with a LIVE feed of the happenings at the match.

Singapore Selection warming up (assistant editor Ervin Ang and Oliver Gui)

Pre-Match

















Curtain Raiser Match: Former Singapore Internationals 3-0 Celebrities (Full-Time) A match featuring the likes of ex-internationals Malek Awab, V. Sundramoothy and Lim Tong Hai. Celebrities playing include Devarajan Varadarajan from  Channel 5 drama Point of Entry, as well as some of the cast members of hit film Ah Boys to Men.

Watch this space tonight, from 7.30pm onwards, for FootballMania's LIVE Commentary of the match between the Singapore Selection and Copa del Rey Champions Atletico Madrid. Our assistants will be LIVE at the Jalan Besar to provide you with photos and reports at half-time. Let's countdown to the action tonight!

COUNTDOWN CLOCK WIDGETS

Singapore Selection: Goalkeepers: Hassan Sunny (Warriors FC), Izwan Mahbud (LionsXII) Defenders: Shakir Hamzah, Hafiz Abu Sujad, Baihakki Khaizan, Safuwan Baharudin (LionsXII), Daniel Bennett (Warriors FC), Afiq Yunos (Courts Young Lions), Noh Rahman (Home United), Rosman Sulaiman (Woodlands Wellington) Midfielders: Faris Ramli, Isa Halim, Hariss Harun, Fazrul Nawaz (LionsXII), Sirina Camara (Home United), Mustafic Fahrudin (Tampines Rovers), Ahmad Latiff (Tanjong Pagar United), Josep Kaplan (Geylang International) Forwards: Shahril Ishak (LionsXII), Indra Shahdan (Home United), Aleksandar Duric (Tampines Rovers), Monsef Zerka (Tanjong Pagar United)