LionsXII held at home

SINGAPORE – The LionsXII were held to a 0-0 draw at home by Terengganu today (Feb 8), a result that did their hopes of retaining the Malaysian Super League (MSL) title no favours.

The Singaporean side has now won just one of their opening four fixtures, and lie sixth in the league with five points, one ahead of big-spending rivals Johor Darul Takzim.

The LionsXII had the better goalscoring chances in the first-half but Terengganu goalkeeper Mohammad Izzuddin Hussin was in inspired form and pulled off good saves to deny Isa Halim and Gabriel Quak.

Both sides continued to attack after the break and Shahfiq Ghani has two golden opportunities to give his side the lead.

His 49th-minute free-kick went inches over the bar and a late effort – after he was left unmarked in the area – went wide, much to the frustration of the home fans at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

LionsXII coach Fandi Ahmad said: “I’m very, very disappointed. We had the chances to win the game in the first half and in the later in the game. We need to score goals to win games and we didn’t do it today. Our first touch wasn’t good our finishing was poor and this is what we need to work on.”

The LionsXII next league match is against ATM FA on Feb 15 at the Stadium Majlis Perbandaran Selayang.