Indonesia boosted their hopes of a semi-final spot in the AFF Suzuki Cup when they edged Singapore 1-0 at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil yesterday.
Substitute Andik Vermansah scored a beauty from a set piece in the 87th minute to beat 10-man Singapore, who lost defender Mohd Irwan Shah in the 64th minute after he picked up a second yellow card.
Singapore’s resilience was in tatters after Irwan’s sending off as Indonesia pressed forward in search of goals.
Indonesia coach Nil Maizar was full of praise for his hard working charges, who are now one step closer to the semi-finals.
“It was a good result before our final group match against Malaysia on Saturday. This has sparked new hope in us … that we can qualify for the semi-finals,” said a jubilant Nil Maizar.
“We played better in the second-half … we controlled the match throughout. This is the perfect tonic for us.”
Singapore coach Radojko Avramovic, however, was furious with the match official for not giving his team a penalty in the 73rd minute.
Singapore forward Khairul Amri was tackled by Wahyu Wijiastanto but referee Ali Hasan Ebrahim of Bahrain controversially booked Khairul for simulation.
“We should have earned a penalty when Khairul was fouled in the box. The outcome would have been different if we had been given a penalty,” said Avramovic, who felt that Andic’s goal was a fluke.
“I think Indonesia got a lucky goal. Andik was trying to cross but the ball somehow went in.
“With the situation now, we must do it the hard way. We must beat Laos if we want to be in the semi-finals.”
Nil Maizar surprisingly started with four new faces, with Elie Aiboy wearing the captain’s armband in the absence of Bambang Pamungkas.
Besides Elie, Novan Sasongko (defence), Vendry Mofu (midfield) and Rachmat Syamsudin (striker) were given a chance by the coach.
Conspicuously absent from the starting line-up was Andik, who was arguably one of Garuda’s best performer in the 2-2 draw with Laos in their opening match.
Singapore kept virtually the same team that beat Malaysia 3-0, with the injured Mohd Saiful Esah replaced by Irwan Shah.
Both teams went straight for the jugular right from the start, with Elie keeping Singapore’s defence busy with his runs while Shahril Ishak was thrust in a forward position for Singapore.
The introduction of Aleksandar Duric for the injured Harris Harun in the 39th minute gave the Lions more firepower, but Indonesia held their ground.
Nil Maizar replaced the weary looking Elie for Andik in the second half to add more punch on the right flank and it worked.
In the 64th minute, Singapore leftback Irwan, who was kept busy all night, was handed a second yellow card for a foul on Andik – just minutes after he had been shown his first.
Ten-man Singapore, however, continued to put two men up front in search of a goal but it was Indonesia who struck, thanks a to peach of a free-kick goal by Andik three minutes from time.
With four points in the bag and with one game left, it was enough for under-fire coach Nil Maizar to run to the stands where Indonesian fans encamped to celebrate the much-needed win when the final whistle blew.
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