The Lion City Sailors moved to the brink of back-to-back Singapore Premier League (SPL) titles with a composed 3-0 victory over 10-man Geylang International at Our Tampines Hub on Sunday (26 April) night.
Goals from Anderson Lopes, Rui Pires and Lennart Thy capped a dominant display from the reigning champions, who now need just one more win against BG Tampines Rovers from their remaining three matches to retain their SPL crown.
Head Coach Jesús Casas praised his side after they secured a sixth consecutive league victory, as they expertly navigated what had been expected to be a tricky test.
“We deserved to win as we had the match under control. We created a lot of chances and pressed well, but we can still improve our finishing. These are three very important points, which put us in a strong position as we are now one game away from winning the title,” said the Spaniard.
“Things are in our hands, so it’s normal there will be pressure. We hope to seal it in the next match, so we need to stay calm and play as we normally do.”
Jesús made four changes from the side that beat Young Lions 2-0, with Anderson, Song Uiyoung, Diogo Costa, and Lionel Tan coming into the starting XI.
It was a cagey opening, with few clear chances, but the Sailors began to find their rhythm approaching the half-hour mark.
Their first real chance of the game came in the 29th minute when stand-in skipper Toni Datković surged forward to set up Lennart, whose tight-angled effort struck the outside of the post.
Three minutes later, Bart Ramselaar capitalised on a loose pass from goalkeeper Rudy Khairullah, but sent his effort over the bar.
At the other end, Ivan Sušak produced a sharp save to deny Riku Fukashiro at the near post in the 35th minute. The Sailors responded immediately, breaking forward through Bart, who slipped Anderson through on goal for a composed chipped finish to open the scoring.
The visitors carried that momentum into the second half and doubled their lead within a minute of the restart. Rui reacted quickest to a loose ball after Geylang failed to clear their lines from Diogo’s corner to slot home only the second goal of his professional career.
The Sailors continued to threaten, with Lennart striking the woodwork again in the 49th minute, before Song rattled the same upright with a volley shortly after.
Further chances followed, including a well-worked move that saw Kyoga Nakamura find Anderson, but the Brazilian forward could only drag his shot wide.
Geylang then thought they had pulled one back in the 59th minute when Fukashiro found the net, but the effort was ruled out for offside.
However, any hopes of a Geylang comeback were effectively ended in the 67th minute when Shahdan Sulaiman was sent off for handling Toni’s goal-bound header. Lennart stepped up to convert the resulting penalty for his 14th league goal of the season and keep his hopes of attaining the SPL Golden Boot alive.
The German nearly added a second late on, but his header was kept out by Rudy.
At the back, Lionel delivered a standout performance in his first appearance under Jesús, and was named Man of the Match as the Sailors recorded their 11th clean sheet of the season.
“We took a while to get the first goal, but we came out strong in the second half,” said Lionel, who made his 103rd appearance for the club. “This season hasn’t been easy for me, as every professional player loves to play more. But for me, it’s all about staying disciplined, keeping the hunger, and being ready when the opportunity comes.”
“I’m thankful we have top players at the club who push each other. Training can be tougher than matches, so it’s about having the right mentality and continuing to improve.”
The Sailors now have the opportunity to seal the title away against BG Tampines this coming Sunday (3 May), before hosting Albirex Niigata (S) in their final home game of the season on 10 May.
“Winning the league title has been our goal from the start,” Lionel added. “We have three games left, and all of them are finals for us. We will continue to play our football and fight for victory in each match.”
Jesús echoed that message, emphasising composure as the title race nears its conclusion.
“Our next match will be very exciting, but we must control our emotions because the job is not done. We are very competitive and want to win all remaining matches while staying true to our football, regardless of the opponent.”
