The First Leg Of The 2020 AFF Cup Semifinal Ends In A Draw, Singapore Coach: Indonesia Is Better Than Expected

JAKARTA - The first leg of the 2020 AFF Cup semifinal which brought together Singapore and Indonesia ended in a 1-1 draw. Indonesia's advantage in the first round was able to be followed by Singapore at the end of the second round.

Even though Singapore was finally able to break Indonesia's advantage, after the match Tatsuma Yoshida admitted that the Garuda squad had better quality than he previously expected.

"I've always had confidence in this team, but Indonesia has better quality than I expected," Yoshida said at the post-match press conference.

In the meeting at the National Stadium, Singapore on Wednesday, December 22, western Indonesia time, Indonesia opened the scoring first through Witan Sulaeman's goal in the 38th minute. However, the hosts did not just give up. They continue to try to dismantle Shin Tae-yong's team's defenses.

The efforts of Yoshida's men found a bright spot towards the end of the second half. Through Ikhsan Fandi in the 70th minute, Singapore was able to make the score 1-1.

Yoshida admitted, the result was not what he expected. But he was grateful at least Singapore did not end the fight empty-handed.

"This result is not too good but also not too bad for us. To be sure, our team did not give up and was able to equalize," said Yoshida.

Not satisfied with the draw in the first leg, the Japanese coach was determined to perform better in the second leg later. He is optimistic because his team has time to recover even though it is short.

"The next game is the second leg with short time to prepare and recover, but I still believe in the ability of my players," he added.

The second leg will take place on Saturday, December 25 at the National Stadium, Singapore. The match is predicted to be more exciting because both teams have big ambitions to qualify for the 2020 AFF Cup final.