Thailand Beat Singapore 3-1 in ASEAN Semi-Final First Leg
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- Teerasak Poeiphimai scored twice in the first half (14th and 26th minutes), the first deflecting off Irfan Fandi and the second a header slipped between Singapore defenders Hariss Harun and Lionel Tan
- Thai keeper Kampol Pathomakkakul saved Shawal Anuar's penalty after a VAR review flagged Yotsakorn Burapha's push on Anuar in a crowded penalty box
- Thai captain Seksan Ratree added a third shortly after the break in the 50th minute, finishing cleanly from Patrik Gustavsson's cross after Lionel Tan's loose pass was intercepted
- Ilhan Fandi curled a late consolation goal from outside the box in the 83rd minute, but Singapore failed to seriously test Kampol despite controlling possession
- The result extended Thailand's unbeaten run against Singapore to 11 games; their last loss to the Lions was a 3-1 first-leg defeat in the 2012 ASEAN final, which Singapore still won on aggregate
- Thailand, ranked 94th in the world and the tournament's highest-ranked side, had swept all four group-stage games scoring 10 goals without conceding
- Singapore finished second in Group A behind defending champions Vietnam — who will face Malaysia in the other semi-final — after a 2-1 win over Cambodia, a win over Timor-Leste, a 0-0 draw with Vietnam, and a 1-1 draw with Indonesia
Why it matters: Singapore now need to overturn a two-goal deficit in the second leg while ending a streak of 11 winless matches against Thailand — and history is not on their side, as their only victory over the War Elephants since 2012 came in a first leg they still lost on aggregate in the 2012 final.
Ask SkimNews
