World Cup qualifiers: Lions taught lesson by South Korea in 7-0 mauling
SINGAPORE – In the lead up to Singapore’s Fifa World Cup qualifier against South Korea, Lions head coach Tsutomu Ogura said that his charges were “up for the challenge”.
On June 6, in front of 49,097 eager fans inside a sold-out National Stadium, the visitors showed that both teams were several classes apart as Singapore were taught a footballing lesson in a 7-0 thumping at the hands of the South Koreans.
It sent the Lions fans home deflated despite them packing the stands for what is the biggest turnout for a match at the National Stadium involving the Singapore national team.
The previous record was during Singapore’s 3-1 loss to Malaysia in the 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup where 48,183 spectators were in attendance.
Perhaps Ogura and the Lions fans’ confidence ahead of the Korea tie stemmed from Singapore’s last home outing here, when the Lions showed heart, grit and intelligence to fight back from two goals down to draw 2-2 against China on March 21.