Defeat shows need for greater exposure: Fandi
Singapore's Under-23 football coach Fandi Ahmad reiterated the importance of exposure after his side lost 2-0 to Myanmar U-23 at the Bishan Stadium last night.
While he was not entirely despondent about the loss, praising his players for putting up a commendable performance, he felt that the disparity between the two sides showed exactly why his boys need to play against international opponents more often.
He said: "It's disappointing to lose, but we're happy to get the chance to play international games.
"It gives a chance to a lot of these youngsters who have no exposure. This is how we want to develop these players.
"Myanmar are a good team. We need more international matches to help these boys learn to be stronger - physically and mentally. Hopefully, we can give them more opportunities."
The Young Lions already have a triangular tournament lined up in August, with Perth Glory and Wellington Phoenix participating as well.
They still hope to make their case for the Asian Games, having been left out of the initial list released by Singapore Olympic National Council last month, but chances look slim ahead of the selection committee's meeting on Tuesday to discuss any appeals.
However, Fandi emphasised that qualifying for the Asian Games is not the priority for them.
For him, the most important thing was that his young charges got the chance to expose themselves to a higher level of international football outside their usual experience in the domestic league. In last night's game, he gave nine of his 12 substitutes game time.
The Young Lions were not devoid of chances, but could not convert any of them.
After a goalless 40 minutes, Myanmar finally broke the deadlock with a wonderfully worked goal.
Htet Phyo Wai fed Win Naing Tun a defence-splitting pass that the forward calmly collected before skipping past two red shirts and smashing his shot into the roof of the net.
A quick counter-attack saw Myanmar grab their second goal in the 62nd minute as Ye Yint Aung nodded in a cross from the left to seal the victory.
Despite the loss, Fandi remained positive, saying: "They didn't give up and had the right attitude. It will take time, but we have the right frame of mind and are on the right track."
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