Singapore could not have asked for a worse start to the 2019 Southeast Asian Games football tournament after only managing a 0-0 draw against Laos in their opening match at the 30th Southeast Asian Games in Manila.
The Young Lions struggled to earn a point over Laos in the opening match at the Rizal Memorial Stadium even though they had the lion’s share of the possession and chances.
The stalemate will do the Young Lions no favours and will now be under tremendous pressure with the likes of Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia still to come.
Laos coach V Sundram Moorthy will count his point earned as a victory as his unfancied Laos found a way to keep out the likes of Ikhsan Fandi and Faris Ramli.
Fandi Ahmad’s Young Lions will now find emerging from the Group of Death unscathed as a pipe dream and possibly a lost cause.