Lions hope to see five stars arising at Asean Championship

PHNOM PENH – There are five stars arising, out of the stormy sea.

Singaporeans of a certain vintage will remember the nostalgic National Day Parade song, and with the Asean Championship kicking off on July 24, 16 days before the Republic’s National Day, the Lions are hoping to turn the catchy lyrics into a prophecy.

It has been 14 years since Singapore last made it to the tournament’s final in 2012, when they also won the last of their four Asean titles.

What followed was a turbulent time of eight permanent and interim coaches as they plunged to a low of world No. 173 in 2017 and 2018.

It was not until 2021 that they returned to the Asean Championship semi-finals. While they repeated the feat in 2024, it is clear they are not in the same league as seven-time champions Thailand and three-time winners Vietnam.

But amid the doom and gloom of ageing warhorses and a dearth of young talent, Singapore produced their brightest Asian Cup qualification campaign – under Japan’s Tsutomu Ogura, before local coach Gavin Lee took over – to make it to the 2027 continental showpiece in Saudi Arabia.

Almost out of nowhere, the historic feat has ignited a wave of optimism.

Make no mistake about it, without top defender Safuwan Baharudin and key striker Ikhsan Fandi, who have not been released by their clubs for this tournament outside FIFA’s international windows, it remains a wild, long shot for the 148th-ranked Lions to add a fifth star on top of their badge.

World No. 94 Thailand and 99th-ranked Vietnam are the region’s representatives among the world’s top 100 teams.

They have maintained a duopoly on the Asean Championship since 2014 and are by far the favourites to reach the final again.

Defending champions Vietnam, who are sending a squad of entirely domestic-based players, are boosted by Brazil-born trio Hendrio, Geovane Magno and Rafaelson, who has 11 goals in just nine appearances for his adopted country.

Thailand, meanwhile, have also named a strong squad with German-born defender Manuel Bihr and Sweden-born striker Patrik Gustavsson, who has eight goals from 11 appearances.

Even getting out of Group A – which also includes Cambodia (July 24, away), Timor-Leste (July 27, home), Vietnam (July 31, away) and Indonesia (Aug 7, home) – looks like a tall order for the Lions, with the Cambodians able to call on three naturalised players from the Ivory Coast, Japan and Uzbekistan.

Beating the relatively inexperienced Cambodians and Timorese in their first two games is the minimum requirement to keep the Lions’ semi-final hopes alive, before their fate looks set to be decided by the sterner tests against Vietnam and Indonesia, who can call upon a wide base from the Indo-Dutch diaspora.

Starved of success for so long, Singapore fans have become more realistic and now just hope to see some form of progress.

Since 2019, there has been some semblance of fighting spirit and identity under Tatsuma Yoshida, Ogura, and now Lee.

What is perhaps most important is that there is some hope for the future from some of the younger players coming through the pipeline.

With some courage and confidence, striking hope Ilhan Fandi, fit-again left-back Nur Adam Abdullah, midfield dynamo Harhys Stewart, nippy winger Farhan Zulkifli, and up-and-coming midfielder Nathan Mao could be the five stars arising out of the stormy seas for Singapore.

Ilhan, who scored the winner against Hong Kong to secure a maiden Asian Cup qualification for the Lions, said: “Ikhsan is a great miss, but regardless of his availability, I have to step up whenever I play.”

The 23-year-old added: “I’m feeling sharper and more comfortable with the national team, and I’ve been doing well recently, but I have to stay humble and keep working hard and improving.”

Farhan, another 23-year-old who could help lighten the attacking load, said: “I’ve been with the national team since I was 16, so it’s about time for me to take the next step and be a key contributor with my speed, dribbles, goals and assists.”

For others, it is about making up for lost time.

Shoulder injuries and national service kept Adam out of the national team for much of 2023 to 2025.

The 25-year-old said: “It had not been a good few years for me. It was tough, but I understood things may not always go my way but there is always something to learn from.

“In my case, it was about moving on and working hard to do better in the future. I had a good run after recovering and I hope I can keep the momentum going for the team.”

Harhys, on the other hand, is looking forward to making his tournament debut, like 18-year-old Mao, after missing out on previous editions. He hopes to establish himself as a leader in the team.

The 25-year-old said: “Just like how senior players like Hariss Harun and (former Lion) M. Anumanthan helped me in the national team, I also want to support and push new talent, like Nathan, who are showing a lot of potential, through what I learnt on and off the pitch with the Lions and from playing in Thailand.

“In tournaments like this, we will have players who play a lot and some who don’t even go on the field. The coach told us, ‘If you don’t play, you should be upset, but you shouldn’t let it affect the team. Keep that fire within you and let it motivate yourself’.

“We understand the importance of being harmonious teammates who also push each other on and off the field to help Singapore do well.”

Lee himself has seized the opportunity to make the full-time national coach gig his own.

Challenging the younger players to establish themselves as the new core of the Lions, the 35-year-old said: “The present is important, but we always have one eye on the future for every national team, and from window to window, there have been younger faces.

“We have the experienced and level-headed likes of Hariss, Izwan Mahbud and Shawal Anuar who are so important to the team because they are the reference for the kind of behaviour we want and the standards we have set for ourselves.

“Then, there is a group of players around their mid-20s who are close to taking over as the backbone, and that bodes well for the future of the national team.

“They are at various stages of their careers and regardless of their roles, we want them to be the best teammates for one another and be at 100 per cent for the team, because at the end of the day, it’s not just about one, five or even 11 players. It has to be about all 26 players pulling their weight.”