As soon as the first whistle blew,
Singapore looked the part. Now, most people would say the opening
half of the game was a rather cagey affair with neither team looking
too sharp in the final third. Only separated at half-time by Khairul
Amri's 19th minute strike, one could be forgiven for
thinking so, but such is the obfuscated lens of the spectator's view.
A football match isn't won simply through an obedient adherence to a
manager's tactical nous or individual moments of brilliance. To do so
would be primarily dismissive of the players as objects of function.
As much as the physical and tactical aspects of the game are
important, the psychological condition (fortitude) of the players are
just as indispensable.
Case in point: The Leeds United side
of the 60's, under the tutelage of Don Revie, was a fine group of
players, but it wasn't only their superior technical abilities that
took them to the top of the Football Leauge and immortalized them in
British football lore. They possessed the bespoke grit, an
unexplainable desire to win, that translated itself on the pitch
through bone-crunching tackles, challenges on every ball, and
relentless marking that took the life out of their opponents. Not
only were they better than you on the ball, they could take it right
off you and kill your confidence in the process. If one considers the
mental state of the players as too abstract a criteria for judgment,
just ask any of the ol' teams that took on Leeds in their glory days.
The Red Lions weren't exactly Leeds
2.0 when they hosted the Azkals last night but they did seize higher
ground early on before even going one-nil up. They broke the
Philippines with confrontative – unapologetic, even – physical
play that destroyed any chance for the Azkals to get into any sort of
early rhythm. It's hard to forget the image of James Younghusband
approaching the referee, demanding intervention, when Phil was felled
again by another piece of strategic bullying. The Azkals weren't
willing to match Singapore in this respect, and so dictated the rest
of the game. They couldn't cope and they didn't want to. Initiative
was given to Singapore, led by a knowledgable and experienced
pragmatist in Radojko Avramovic who has been continually praised for
getting results despite a small pool of talent and resources. The
Philippines was in a fragile mental state for the entire half. The
lapse that led to the goal was its inevitable product. It seemed
rather unlikely the Azkals would wrest control away from the Red
Lions who knew what to do, and knew themselves well to compensate for
their limitations. The Azkals, in stark contrast, had a side brimming
with ability and potential but was bogged down again by their
constant on-pitch identity crisis.
The second-half was a lesson in
soaking up the pressure, a gutsy move by Singapore and one they
executed to near-perfection. It's difficult to believe a side this
disciplined and tactically astute was only formed a year ago. They
didn't have to defend their lead valiantly because they were
comfortable keeping the ball out from deep. Also, the Azkals were too
predictable, unable to stretch the Lions much at all. The best the
Azkals could manage was half-chance from just outside the box, a
left-footed snapshot by Phil Younghusband that was never going to
beat the keeper following a deflected pass from Guirado.
In the dying minutes, Avramovic was
absolutely livid when his players weren't killing time, keeping safe
possession, and putting the ball in the corners. They did so
afterwards, effectively negating the Azkals' late siege, showing how
footballing discipline and pragmatism can get results and their
manager's crucial role in instilling these principles.
In summary, to focus too much on the
weaknesses and shortcomings of the Azkals would discredit Singapore
and Avramovic who were all too aware of them as they did exploit.
----
Appendix A- Positives from yet
another semi-final exit:
- A. Guirado is a useful, useful boy/siege tank despite having a touch (and appearance) as cultured as a caveman. The only way the Philippines looked like they were going to score was if Guirado did something Guirado-like and the ball ends up in the back of the net (not necessarily from his own club foot).
- All this pre-match hype about Lucena must have sparked something in Mulders who overshadowed his partner in a much-improved, if unimaginative, performance.
- Cagara and Caligdong have a nice understanding between them. This is a partnership to watch out for. Now, if someone could just teach them how to cross...
- Ed Sacapaňo sans his comedic attempt to stain his good name with a ghastly clearance.
- A welcome absence of sand traps on the pitch.
Appendix B- Hilarious stuff from the
game
- Phil spending more time lying on the turf than on the ball
- Caligdong playing as if it were the World Cup final when everyone else stopped because of a Singapore man down
- Caligdong blasting a shot high a good second after the whistle had blown
- Guirado's 3rd, 4th, and 5th touches
- Phil screaming at Guirado for the ball (again)
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