Vietnam achieve new milestones with victory over Singapore

Striker Nguyen Tien Linh (number 22) celebrates the opening goal in Vietnam's 2-0 win over Singapore at Jalan Besar Stadium on Dec. 26, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Hieu Luong

Singapore, unable to play at the National Stadium due to concerts, chose Jalan Besar Stadium's artificial turf over the natural grass pitch of Bishan Stadium. This decision came with confidence, as Singapore have been unbeaten at Jalan Besar for nearly 11 years. Their last loss at the venue was a 1-3 defeat to Jordan in the 2015 Asian Cup qualifiers in 2014.

Since then, they have gone unbeaten in 10 matches, holding their own against stronger opponents like Palestine, Turkmenistan, Malaysia and Vietnam. Notably, they held Vietnam to a 0-0 draw in the group stage of the 2022 AFF Cup, now ASEAN Cup.

That streak came to an end on Thursday night, as late goals from Nguyen Tien Linh and Nguyen Xuan Son secured the guests' victory.

The win not only gave Vietnam a significant advantage ahead of the second leg at Viet Tri Stadium, Phu Tho, on Sunday, but also marked their first win by more than one goal margin against Singapore. Previously, Vietnam managed only narrow wins in their six visits to Singapore.

The 2-0 win was also a first for Vietnam in the first leg of an ASEAN Cup knockout round. In their previous 11 semifinal and final first leg games, their best margin was a single goal, including the iconic 2-1 victory over Thailand in the first leg of the 2008 AFF Cup final.

With Thursday result, Vietnam extended their unbeaten streak against Singapore to 15 matches, the longest against any opponent in the team's history. Following Singapore, Vietnam also holds a 14-match unbeaten streak against Laos. The last time Vietnam lost to Singapore was in the 1998 Tiger Cup, now ASEAN Cup, final, when center-back Ramu Sasikumar's goal sealed a 1-0 victory at Hang Day Stadium, Hanoi.

Singapore honored that victory by inviting Sasikumar and several players from their 1998 title-winning squad to support the team at Jalan Besar on Thursday. Tens of thousands of fans without tickets gathered at shopping malls to watch the match on big screens. Despite showing resilience and creating pressure in the second half, Singapore ran out of steam and conceded two late goals.