After a confident start to the tournament, the way Singapore conceded three goals against Laos was indeed worrying. Thus ‘Bai’ will need to summon the experience accumulated from his near-century of caps to hold the Lions' fort and stop Phil from inflicting damage on them.

Similarly, despite an unimpressive start to the tournament, one should not write off the attacking qualities of the older of the Younghusband brothers. Incisive running and good delivery of crosses means the Azkals do pose a threat from out wide – a key problem for the Lions.

As was most evident in the last two games, the flanks have been exposed by fleet-footed attackers and thus the expected return of Shaiful to the starting lineup will be a big boost for the Lions.
Famed for his classy left peg that has already provided two assists in this tournament, the 26-year-old will need to shine in the other side of his game against the classy Azkals attacker.

Despite being relatively young at the age of 22, this is already the third tournament that De Jong has played in for the Azkals, and this tournament could prove to be the coming of age for the Philippines U-23 skipper.
He has made full use of his aggressive style in the middle of the park – stifling the Viets and Burmese in successive games, as well as setting up Phil for the opening goal in the latter game.

With hardman Hariss Harun already ruled out of the tournament, the spotlight falls on Isa who is expected to earn his first start in this edition.

Whether Singapore will win this midfield battle will depends heavily on Isa Halim’s energy and ability to strike up a partnership with Mustafic Fahrudin.

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