Singapore 1-2 Thailand: post-match analysis

Singapore 1-2 Thailand: post-match analysis

AFF Suzuki Cup 2014 Group B Matchday 1

by editor Wong Yang

• 32,000 spectators for Singapore's opening game
• Poor defending disappoints both sides in first half
• Bernd Stange makes dubious decisions
• 87th minute penalty breaks deadlock and sinks Singapore

The Singapore players in their usual pre-match team huddle. (Photo by Wong Yang)

"Singapore, the Kallang Roar is back!" bellowed the National Stadium emcee, who was certainly not the only enthusiastic person in the stadium.

When the Singapore National Team walked onto the pitch, 32,000 fervent fans greeted them with thunderous cheers, excited to see their National Team return to the hallowed Kallang ground, where they have not played a competitive match since the demolishing of the old National Stadium in 2010. As the home fans sang a stirring rendition of Majulah Singapura, a cluster of fans in the section behind the Singapore goal unveiled an eye-catching banner that read, "This is Kallang", while another group of fans lifted a huge Singapore flag above their heads. It was the culmination of a week of hype for the Singapore football fraternity as they counted down the days to the start of Singapore's AFF Suzuki Cup campaign. However, their hope of seeing the home team, who are also the defending champions of the tournament, get off to a winning start was dented after Thailand converted an 87th minute penalty. 

Thailand (blue) in their 4-1-4-1 formation

Thailand coach Kiatisuk Senamuang opted for a 4-1-4-1 formation and made the surprising decision to leave star player Chanathip Songkrasin on the bench. The 21-year-old playmaker is nicknamed the "Thai Messi" for his dribbling and pace. Another player Senamuang left on the bench is 28-year-old defensive midfielder Adul Lasoh, who was given the captain's armband to lead a young Thailand squad in this tournament. Senamuang instead relied on Swiss-born Charyl Chappuis, Kroekrit Thaweekan, Mongkol Thosakrai, and Sarach Yooyen to further Thailand's cause in midfield. Playing as a lone striker upfront was Kirati Keawsombut, who is one of the senior members of the squad.

How Singapore lined-up v Thailand
(Create your own formation with footballuser.com)

Singapore's 4-3-3 and midfield triangle

Senamuang's counterpart Bernd Stange, who was chosen by the Football Association of Singapore to succeed three-time winner of the AFF Suzuki Cup Raddy Avramovic in May 2013, decided to field a 4-3-3 line-up. With striker Khairul Amri supported by tournament debutants Faris Ramli on the left and Sahil Suhaimi on the right, Stange played a midfield triangle formed by captain and attacking midfielder Shahril Ishak, along with central midfielders Hariss Harun and Shahdan Sulaiman.

Shahdan Sulaiman (marked by asterisk) turning around the defender
and the space that Hariss Harun can pass into

Fired-up by the support of the home fans, Singapore began the match on the front foot as they controlled the ball and prevented Thailand from winning possession. The creativity that Singapore's midfield triangle could produce was evident by the 6th minute, when defender Safuwan Bahrudin passed the ball in the direction of Shahdan Sulaiman, who intelligently played the dummy for the ball to arrive at Hariss Harun's feet. The set-piece specialist then swiftly turned around his defender, triggering a creative series of passes between Hariss, Shahril and himself. Shahril then executed the final move by attempting a lofted through ball to Shahdan, who by then had ran into the penalty box, but Thailand defender Atit Daosawang read the pass well and intercepted it.

Singapore's midfield triangle in action

Although Singapore's midfield triangle won the midfield battle, the Lions were unable to penetrate the Thai backline as their wingers' (Faris Ramli and Sahil Suhaimi) indecisiveness cost them in the final third. With the home side dominating possession, the visitors treasured their time on the ball and looked to quick passes to advance. However, the intense pressure that their hosts applied on them caused them to pass out of panic, which in turn lead to sloppy passing. 

Despite giving away the ball too easily, Thailand got their lucky break when they caught the Lions defence off guard through a throw-in. Thailand left-back Perapat Notechaiya threw the ball over an unwatchful Baihakki Khaizan for teammate Prakit Deeprom. The 26-year-old then took a comfortable first touch and drilled a low cross towards teammate Mongkol Tossakrai at the far post, whose presence was unknown to a ball-watching Shaiful Esah. Tossakrai cut behind Shaiful to score the opening goal on 9 minutes, as the Singapore fans looked on, shocked by their defence's lack of concentration.

Build-up to Thailand's goal - Pt 1
Baihakki Khaizan (marked by asterisk) caught off guard
Shaiful Esah (marked by star) seen ball-watching and out of position
(Thailand #2 Notechaiya threw the ball in)

Build-up to Thailand's goal - Pt 2
Tossakrai decided to cut behind Shaiful Esah, who is still ball-watching
Baihakki Khaizan failed to close down on Deeprom to prevent the cross

Build-up to Singapore's goal - Pt 1
Shaiful Esah gifted yards of space on the left flank

It was not long before the Singapore fans were hyped up again, as Thailand also suffered from dreadful defending. Upon receiving the ball on the left flank, left-back Shaiful Esah found himself with plenty of space to push the ball into as the Thai players lacked urgency on defence. As Shaiful made more progress down the left flank, Thai midfielder Chappuis decided to pressure him, but instead of really closing down on the Singaporean defender, he simply ran alongside him. That gave Shaiful the space and time to look up before executing a pinpoint cross to Khairul Amri, who made such a quick change in the direction of his run that his defender, Adison Promrak, was caught out of position. Amri confidently headed the ball into the back of the net for the equaliser, sending the 32,000 Singapore fans into a frenzy. 

Build-up to Singapore's goal - Pt 2
Khairul Amri's unpredictable change of direction, runs into drop zone
(yellow spot indicates his initial position)

Singapore fans celebrating Khairul Amri's goal (Video by Wong Yang)

Singapore's quick response to Thailand's first goal set them up with a momentum that would see them dominate the remainder of the first half. The home side pushed forward with energy and got into more threatening positions than their opponents did. The Lions' short passing and off-the-ball-movement saw them engage in a high energy style of play that seemed to stun their opponents, who were still trying to cope with Singapore's pressing. However, Singapore did not capitalise on that as lapses of concentration and their lack of composure in the attacking third saw players like Faris Ramli, Sahil Suhaimi and even captain Shahril Ishak commit mistakes like taking too heavy a touch or passing into no man's land. As half time approached, it became evident that a second goal for Singapore was not to be. Shahril volleyed wastefully over the bar, while Faris mishandled a splendid through ball played to him and then fired a powerful shot straight at the Thai keeper, who saved the shot with considerable ease.

Half-time at the National Stadium

Meanwhile, Singapore's experienced defender Baihakki Khaizan seemed to be losing his head, as he picked up a yellow card for an unnecessary tackle and then dangerously brought down Thai midfielder Thaweekan. Eventually, Singapore coach Stange decided to bring Baihakki, who would be replaced by midfielder Zulfahmi Arifin, off at half-time. The fact that Singapore had no central defenders on the bench suggests that Stange deems his central defence pairing of Baihakki and Safuwan reliable, but in the heat of the moment, he failed to trust Baihakki's experience and ability to compose himself, and that turned out to be a huge game-changer.

With a defender swapped for a midfielder, Stange instructed midfielder Hariss Harun to drop back into central defence. This move meant that Hariss would no longer be in the midfield triangle that had allowed Singapore to control the game. Capable as Hariss proved to be in central defence, his absence in midfield saw the Lions' lose their dynamic style of play. He was no longer in a position to trigger intelligent plays between Shahdan, Shahril and himself, or thread long-range passes to striker Amri and the wingers. Substitute Zulfahmi found himself in shoes that were too big to fill, as he struggled to retain possession and made poor decisions. The midfield triangle was no longer the fast unit that moved in tandem; it became a static trio that failed to connect. Just like that, the home team lost the midfield battle.

The Thais began the second half with the same team that ended the first. With Singapore losing control of the midfield and pressing with less intensity, the War Elephants had more time on the ball and passed with more confidence. Thai midfielders Chappuis, Yooyen, Thaweekan and Tossakai stringed together clever passes. Chappuis and Tossakai, in particular, made tireless runs with and without the ball, penetrating the Singapore defence with their direct approach and forcing many saves out of Singapore custodian Hassan Sunny. However, Thailand's own defence remained fragile - just 5 minutes into the second half, centre-half Praweenwat Boonyong tried to play the ball to his central midfielders but ended up giving away the ball cheaply to Shahril Ishak.  Shahril made a one-touch pass to Khairul Amri who was on the edge of the penalty area with space in front of him, but the fourth official caught him just offside, much to Boonyong's relief. Moments later, the Thai defence failed to clear a lobbed through ball from Shahdan to Shahril, who attempted a volley but mistimed his kick. Time and time again, the visitors escaped from threatening situations unscathed due to Singapore's poor finishing.

Nicknamed the "Thai Messi", Chanathip Songkrasin was left on the bench
and finally brought on in the 64th minute (Photo by Bangkok Post)

After the 60-minute mark, Senamuang brought on 1.8m-tall striker Adisak Kraisorn for Keawsombut, and then replaced Deeprom with star player Songkrasin. With Kraisorn and Songkrasin in the fray, Thailand's attacking threat grew. Songkrasin made surging runs and eased his way around the Singapore defenders with his slick dribbling, before passing the ball to Kraisorn, who would hold the ball up with his back towards the goal before turning to shoot. It took desperate defending from Hariss and Safuwan to deny the pair, who looked increasingly unstoppable as the second half progressed. 

On the other hand, Bernd Stange made only one substitution at the 60th minute mark, opting to bring on Shakir Hamzah to replace Shaiful Esah, who created Singapore's equaliser. It was strange that Stange did not bring on any midfielders or wingers at that moment, especially since it had been 15 minutes since the start of the second half and it was clear that his team lacked control of the midfield while some of his players in attack looked tired. By the 85th minute mark, both teams still had not broken the deadlock, and Stange substituted Gabriel Quak, who happens to be the only Chinese player in the Singapore squad, for Sahil Suhaimi. Despite the substitution, things got worse for the Lions.

In the 87th minute, goalscorer Mongkol Thosakrai craftily drew the Singapore defenders to him before laying off the ball for teammate Chappuis on the right flank. With the space that Thosakrai had created for him, Chappuis drilled a hopeful cross into the box that ended up hitting Safuwan Bahrudin's outstretched right arm. It was a chilling scene for the Singapore supporters present, and also one that was in full view of referee Faghani Alireza Mohd, who immediately pointed to the spot for a penalty. The Singapore side watched in disbelief while their Thai counterparts pumped their fists in ecstasy. Almost without delay, Chappuis calmly stepped up to the spot and fired the penalty in the bottom left corner of the net. Hassan Sunny jumped the right way, but Chappuis's shot was far too powerful and Singapore found themselves trailing with just a few minutes of play remaining.

Safuwan Bahrudin's outstretched arm making contact with the ball

Five minutes of stoppage time were given, but Singapore simply could not equalise, and it was full-time before they knew it. 

The result sends Singapore to the bottom of the group table while Thailand lead with three points following Malaysia and Myanmar's stalemate at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

Bernd Stange's decisions were questionable, but the Singapore players have themselves to blame for their lack of composure and disappointing finishing. Thailand, however, will be thrilled to have begun their AFF Suzuki Cup campaign with a vital win over the defending champions on their own turf.

Singapore face former coach Raddy Avramovic's Myanmar side on Wednesday, while the War Elephants meet Singapore's Causeway rivals Malaysia on the same day.

Singapore v Myanmar prediction: 2-0
Malaysia v Thailand prediction: 0-3

Kallang Wave before the match kicked off - even the fans still finding their seats joined in! (Video by Wong Yang)

(Television screenshots were of FOX Sports's coverage of the match)