Late drama has seen Singapore suffer a 2-0 loss to Vietnam in the first leg of the ASEAN Championship semifinals.

SINGAPORE: For 90 minutes, the Lions went toe to toe with regional heavyweights Vietnam, buoyed by the support of a vociferous sea of red at the Jalan Besar Stadium. But two late goals in the depths o

Xuan Son Nguyen continued his red-hot form in the ASEAN Championship when he scored in Vietnam’s 2-0 win against Singapore in their semifinal first-leg on Thursday.

SINGAPORE: The Lions suffered two sickening stoppage-time blows on Boxing Day as they lost 2-0 to Vietnam in the first leg of the Asean Championship semi-finals at the Jalan Besar Stadium on Dec 26.

Jalan Besar Stadium's artificial turf and the close proximity of the field to the stands could be advantageous for Singapore, say observers.

The first leg of the 2024 ASEAN Championship semifinal between Singapore and Vietnam had a change in venue wherein it was moved from the Singapore National Stadium.

The Lions reached the semi-finals after finishing second in Group A with wins over Cambodia (2-1 at the National Stadium) and Timor-Leste (3-0 in Hanoi), a valiant defeat by defending champions Thailand (4-2 at the National Stadium) and a battling draw in Malaysia (0-0 in Bukit Jalil).

Only 70 tickets were allowed to be sold to Vietnamese supporters for the first match between the Vietnam and Singapore national football teams at the 6,000-seat Jalan Besar Stadium, but all 70 supporters saw Vietnam take the advantage in the ASEAN Cup semis with a 2-0 win.

Vietnam pulled off a convincing 2-0 victory against Singapore in stoppage time with a penalty by striker Tien Linh, and a goal doubling the score by naturalized striker of Brazilian origin Nguyen Xuan Son in the first leg of the ASEAN Cup 2024 semi-final at Jalan Besar Stadium in the island-city state on December 26 evening.