Good team performance by Singapore gives Coach Raddy Avramovic plenty to think about

Story By Koh Yizhe. Photos by Lai Jun Wei and Marvin Tang.

Beside Daniel Bennett who was at the top of his game in Singapore's 2-1 victory over Jordan in their Group E Asian Cup qualifier, the rest of the Singapore national football team also put in a credible performance.

Changes in the midfield might have come as a surprise to some as Shi Jiayi was dropped with John Wilkinson pairing up with Mustafic Fahrudin in the middle, while Ridhuan played on the right and Shahril Ishak was given the task of causing terror on the left flank.

The wingers didn't disappoint. Ridhuan’s crosses from the wings bombarded Jordan's penalty area from the right while Shahril linked up well with both Agu and Noh Alam Shah with his darting runs.

Shahril made the cross to Ridhuan that resulted in Singapore's first goal and also crafted a chance for Noh Alam Shah. Shahril threaded a pass to the unmarked Noh Alam Shah in the 35th minute after a nice layoff by Agu, but Alam Shah's shot was blocked by the keeper.

If Shahril Ishak was in any danger of getting dropped by national football coach Raddy Avramovic, the 70 minutes of solid football he displayed will have reinforced his status as a first-choice player.

He was replaced by Shi Jiayi after Singapore had taken the 2-1 lead.

Even the Jordanian coach Vingada reserved praise for him, saying, "#17 (Shahril) is a great player. He played really well and caused a lot of problems for our defense."

Ridhuan Muhamad didn't have a bad game himself, as he provided an assist to Agu for the first goal, although it was an uncontrolled header. He was also a thorn in Jordan's defense with his speed and combined well with left-back Noh Rahman down the right.

With his speed, he made space for himself and had a great chance in the 59th minute when he burst past his marker only to let the chance slip as he was torn between shooting and squaring the ball to the on-rushing Agu. His indecision allowed a defender to slide the ball away from him.

Up front, Noh Alam Shah was back to his scoring ways as he rammed home the winning goal after being put through by Daniel Bennett. He was scoreless against Iran and Vietnam in previous games. On top of that, he showed good awareness as he had a couple of opportunities to add to his tally.

With Agu likewise at his best and Aleksandar Duric recovering well and recently passing his Beep Test with a 13.7 score, coach Avramovic will have more striking options going forward.