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Tag: Bernd Stange

  • Abbas Saad And Rafi Ali Slam Lions’ Dismal Showing Against Guam

    Abbas Saad And Rafi Ali Slam Lions’ Dismal Showing Against Guam

    Two of Singapore’s former football heroes, Abbas Saad and Rafi Ali, have slammed the national team following their abysmal 2-2 draw with Guam on Tuesday night (Mar 31).

    They were speaking on the sidelines of the launch of a global seven-aside football tournament, 24Sevens.

    167th-ranked Guam lie 14 places below Singapore in the FIFA rankings, but the difference did not show at Jalan Besar Stadium. The Lions trailed the visitors twice, and it took a second-half leveller from Faris Ramli to spare the hosts further embarrassment.

    Singapore have now won only four times in their last 12 games, including matches at their AFF Suzuki Cup run.

    Abbas Saad, who was part of the Singapore team in the Malaysian League in 1990 and from 1993 to 1994, said: “2-2, Guam and the Singapore national team, in your home den. That is embarrassing, that is not good enough. There have got to be changes here. The coach has got to answer what is going on with the results.

    “And again, it is not the results, it is the way they have been playing the game. Are you getting the best out of the players, are you identifying the best players, are you getting the right set-up or the right formation out there? I do not think so.”

    Meanwhile, Rafi Ali, who was in the Singapore national team from 1995 to 2003, said: “When you have that flag, you must be proud of that flag. And some of the players, when I watch some of the games, they have it. But we need to have this on a consistent basis, week in, week out. Just give your best and give your 100 per cent. Because you are playing for your country. Because not many people have the privilege to put on the jerseys.”

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • Sportshub Pte Ltd And Bernd Stange War Of Words Over Pitch Readiness And Ability To Attract Quality Opposition

    Sportshub Pte Ltd And Bernd Stange War Of Words Over Pitch Readiness And Ability To Attract Quality Opposition

    The Republic’s national head coach Bernd Stange has claimed it is very, very difficult to attract big teams to play them as long as the National Stadium’s pitch is not ready.

    However, his controversial comments have been refuted by the 55,000-seater arena’s operators SportsHub Pte Ltd, which reiterated that the issue is being addressed, and the later stages of June’s SEA Games football tournament and July’s Barclays Asia Trophy, both to be held there, will show the playing surface to be up to the mark.

    Stange’s remarks came when he was asked at yesterday’s pre-match press conference for Singapore’s friendly against Guam at the Jalan Besar Stadium tonight why the Lions, who are 153rd in FIFA’s world rankings, are playing a world No 167 side instead of a higher-ranked team that could provide a stiffer contest.

    “It’s very, very difficult to convince top-class teams to play at Jalan Besar Stadium,” said Stange, referring to the venue’s artificial turf.

    “All my promises I gave to bring teams over with my personal contacts to speak with (Iran coach Carlos) Queiroz, with (Russia coach) Fabio Capello and others depend on a ready Sports Hub.

    “Unfortunately, a lot of teams refuse to play Singapore on the artificial pitch. Even Japan refused to make training sessions here (at the Jalan Besar Stadium) before they played Brazil (at the National Stadium last year) … As long as the (National Stadium’s pitch at the) Sports Hub is not ready, we cannot attract big teams. I did everything, but it’s difficult to convince teams to play there.”

    The National Stadium’s Desso GrassMaster pitch — a mixture of natural grass woven onto synthetic fibres — cut up badly during Brazil’s match with Japan in October last year, prompting a re-scheduling of events to allow the pitch to recover for the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup in November.

    In December, SportsHub Pte Ltd, which operates the 55,000-seater National Stadium, announced a lay-and-play turf would be used for this June’s SEA Games to ensure an optimal playing surface.

    In response to Stange’s comments, SportsHub Pte Ltd’s senior director (corporate communications and stakeholder management) Jose Raymond said about the lay-and-play pitch: “Work has been ongoing and has been progressing very well, and will be implemented in time for the SEA Games in June.

    “The Barclays Asia Trophy, which will be held for the first time in Singapore, will involve top English Premiership sides Arsenal, Everton and Stoke City at the National Stadium in July. We look forward to having these world-class teams play at the National Stadium.

    “FIFA dates have been confirmed for the next three years till 2017. We have been engaging the Football Association of Singapore and we look forward to hearing their plans, and working with them to bring world-class international football teams to the National Stadium for the benefit of our football fans.”

    Singapore head into their first meeting with Guam on the back of last week’s 2-0 loss to Thailand, and a win will ease some pressure following their disappointing group stage exit at last November’s Suzuki Cup.

    Guam are without Los Angeles Galaxy defender Adolph Joseph DeLaGarza, but head coach Gary White insists they are not here to make up the numbers.

    “In the past two-and-half years, we’ve installed a belief to play football, rather than just sit back and hope for the best and keep the scores the low,” he said.

    Singapore will be without centre-back Afiq Yunos, who is out for three months with a knee injury, while goalkeeper Hassan Sunny, defenders Baihakki Khaizan and Madhu Mohana, and attacking midfielder Shahril Ishak remain doubtful.

    Nonetheless, Stange insisted he will field his strongest available line-up. “It’s a home game, we are responsible for our fans,” he said. “Hopefully we have fans to see this match against a team that is better than everyone believes.”

    Singapore midfielder Hariss Harun added: “Lapses in our focus cost us the two goals (against Thailand last week). We also need to get into positions to score goals. We get chances but don’t put them away.”

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Bernd Stange: Lions Will Do Their Best As Tribute To Lee Kuan Yew

    Bernd Stange: Lions Will Do Their Best As Tribute To Lee Kuan Yew

    KORAT, Thailand: Even as the Lions prepare to take on Thailand in the first leg of two friendly matches, the mood in the training camp has been sombre, said the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) on Wednesday (Mar 25). This was attributed to the passing of Singapore’s founding Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, on Monday.

    Calling the Lions’ first training sessions “tough”, the FAS said the players were “visibly distraught at the loss of Mr Lee but showed much determination and focus”.

    “We are deeply saddened by the passing of Mr Lee Kuan Yew. A visionary leader, he built a beautiful and prosperous country which we are proud to call our own,” said Singapore captain Shahril Ishak. “His contributions cannot be measured in words and we will miss him deeply.”

    “We are highly motivated during our training sessions and we are looking to give a very good account of ourselves in the match,” added Shahril. “We are determined to do well for our nation.”

    “I could not ask for more from the players. They gave their all and it has been tough first training session for all of them. I also hope the players will do their best as a tribute to Mr Lee,” added Head Coach Bernd Stange.

    As a mark of respect to Mr Lee, the players and officials will be wearing black armbands during the game and a minute’s silence will also be observed before the match.

    Lions goalkeeper Hassan Sunny, who plays for Thai Premier League leaders Army United FC, said during his time in Thailand, everyone in the country was looking forward to the clash.

    “Everyone in Thailand has been talking about the match as soon as it was announced earlier this year,” said Hassan. “Even when I was injured, I was interviewed by the Thai media on my thoughts for the match instead of my injury!”

    “We will prepare well accordingly and do our best against them on Thursday,” he added.

    The matches have been organised to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between both nations, and the first leg will take place in Thailand on Thursday (Mar 26), at the His Majesty the King’s 80th Birthday Anniversary, 5 December 2007 Sports Complex, 8pm Singapore time.

     

    Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

  • Safuwan Baharudin: Everyone Involved Should Shoulder Blame For Lions’ Suzuki Cup Exit

    Safuwan Baharudin: Everyone Involved Should Shoulder Blame For Lions’ Suzuki Cup Exit

    By his own admission, it was not a good 2014 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup outing for Safuwan Baharudin.

    Two years ago, he and fellow Lion Baihakki Khaizan were feted as the region’s top central defensive pairing in Singapore’s winning campaign.

    But after their exit on Saturday from the group stage of this year’s competition, the team, their coach and the Football Association of Singapore are bearing the brunt of criticism from the football fraternity and fans who had expected more from the defending champions.

    While media reports have cited disharmony in the squad and dissatisfaction with head coach Bernd Stange as reasons for the poor showing, Safuwan would not be drawn to adding more fuel to the fire.

    Instead, the 23-year-old told TODAY: “(The blame for) Singapore’s exit from the Suzuki Cup has to be shouldered by everyone in the team and not just coach Bernd Stange. We cannot push all the blame on him. Every member of the team has to share the responsibility, Stange included.

    “But he is only the coach; he decides the line-up and the tactical formation, but at the end of the day, what the players do on the field decides the outcome of the game.

    “In short, all of us are in it together. Sink or swim.”

    Calling it a nightmare outing for the Lions, Safuwan said losses to Thailand and Malaysia showed that the team still had plenty to learn.

    “Especially in our attacking part of the game, we did not score a single goal from open play, apart from Khairul Amri’s header against Thailand,” he pointed out. “The other goals came from set pieces: Free-kicks and corner kicks.

    “We lacked creativity up front. We didn’t have someone brave and confident enough to take on opposing defenders in the 18-yard box and do the damage.”

    Until the free-kick he took, which resulted in Amri equalising against Malaysia, Safuwan’s campaign this year had been teetering on disaster. His handball late in the opener against Thailand led to the visitors’ winning penalty. In the following match, his foul on Myanmar striker Kyaw Ko Ko led to yet another penalty in a poor second half for the Lions that heralded the disaster against Malaysia.

    “I must admit that I had a very quiet tournament, especially in the opening two matches. But I know I had a better game against Malaysia, and I thought I could get better if we had entered the semi-finals,” said Safuwan.

    “The Suzuki Cup is over for us. We have the World Cup qualifiers next year. And while we’re frustrated with the early exit from the Suzuki Cup, maybe we should not dwell on it anymore and move on.”

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com