Singapore: Cambodia will look to build on their impressive opening-day draw with Malaysia in Group A of the ASEAN Mitsubishi Electric Cup™ 2024 when they take on Singapore at National Stadium on Wednesday.
Having fallen behind in their Matchday One encounter against the Malaysians in Phnom Penh on Sunday, Cambodia stormed back after the interval and took a 2-1 lead thanks for goals from Kader Coulibaly and Sa Ty to leave the Koupreys on the verge of a famous victory.
As it transpired, Fergus Tierney equalised for the Harimau Malaya inside the final 20 minutes as the sides shared the spoils in a gripping opening game of the 2024 regional showpiece.
While Koji Gyotoku’s Cambodia didn’t pick up the three points they were temporarily dreaming of, the 2-2 draw will undoubtedly go down as one of their greatest ever results in the ASEAN Championship.
The game marked the first time in the tournament’s history that Cambodia had taken a point off a former champion, and also built on the wins against the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam at the 2022 edition when they picked up their best ever points tally.
Cambodia will now travel to Singapore to take on another previous ASEAN Championship winner, with the Lions having lifted the title on four occasions, most recently in 2012.
Singapore sat out of Matchday One so are set to open their campaign in front of home support in Kallang, and they will hope to improve on a disappointing 2022 which saw them exit at the group stage.
Having been crowned champions in 1998, 2004, 2007 and 2012, Singapore are the second most successful team in the ASEAN Championship behind Thailand. But over the past decade they have rarely challenged, with a semi-final showing at the 2020 edition the only time they’ve made it beyond the group stage since they last won the title.
Experienced skipper Hariss Harun will lead the side with Shahdan Sulaiman, Faris Ramli, Safuwan Baharudin and Shawal Anuar among the other key players included in the squad.
Tsutomu Ogura’s side have endured a difficult year to date and go into the match on the back of losing four of the past five games, including a 3-2 friendly defeat to Chinese Taipei in November.
History, however, is on their side against Cambodia, a side they have never lost to and have won their past 14 meetings dating back to 1997. In the ASEAN Championship, the teams have faced off four times, most recently in 2008, with the Cambodians yet to register a goal.
Singapore vs Cambodia
Venue: National Stadium, Kallang
Kick-off: 11 December, 8PM (Local Time)
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