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Sundram's Lions move up four rungs in FIFA rankings

SINGAPORE — It seems like things are beginning to look up for national football head coach V. Sundramoorthy and his Lions.

Singapore (in blue) got the final stage of their Asian Cup qualifying campaign off to a good start by holding Bahrain to a 0-0 draw. Photo: AFC

Singapore (in blue) got the final stage of their Asian Cup qualifying campaign off to a good start by holding Bahrain to a 0-0 draw. Photo: AFC

SINGAPORE — It seems like things are beginning to look up for national football head coach V. Sundramoorthy and his Lions.

Just eight days after Singapore got the final stage of its 2019 Asian Cup qualifying campaign off to a good start, by holding Group E rivals Bahrain to a 0-0 draw on March 29, the Republic received another piece of good news.

According to the latest FIFA rankings which were released on Thursday (April 6), the Lions have climbed four rungs to No. 159.

The latest ranking is part of the slow climb that the Lions have been making on the FIFA ladder after they fell to their lowest-ever ranking of 171 in October 2016. Singapore finished in 165th position at the end of 2016, and were No 163 last month before the latest rankings were released.

Singapore's current spot on the FIFA ladder means that they are the fifth best country in South-east Asian football. The Philippines are the highest at 127, followed by Thailand (129), Vietnam (136) and Malaysia (157).

Sundram, who was given a two-year extension to his contract by the Football Association of Singapore last month, was recently quoted in the media as saying that the draw with Bahrain has given his players a massive boost after their 1-2 loss to Afghanistan in a friendly on March 25. 

"This result is a boost for Singapore football and it shows our players can compete at this level if they stay focused and disciplined," he was reported as saying in The New Paper. 

"We had a good performance against Afghanistan too, but lost 2-1. This time, they really got stuck in and got the job done."

"Hopefully, this is the start of a successful new chapter. I have been given a two-year extension, I want to make the most of it, win games and achieve success with the national team.

"It is important to start the campaign on the right foot and now we have every chance to go on and qualify for the Asian Cup."

Sundram is bidding to be the first national coach to get Singapore into the Asian Cup finals. The last time Singapore played in the tournament was in 1984. As hosts, the Republic did not need to qualify for the tournament.

Barring any latest announcements of new fixtures by the Football Association of Singapore, the Lions are scheduled to play three international games in June.

TODAY understands that a friendly against Myanmar has been arranged for June 6 in preparation for the Lions' second Asian Cup group match against Taiwan on June 10. Both matches are likely to be held at either Jalan Besar or Bishan Stadium.

TODAY also reported last week that two-time World Cup champions Argentina have been pencilled in for an international friendly against Singapore on June 13.

Meanwhile, five-time world champions Brazil have overtaken South American arch-rivals Argentina and returned to the top of the FIFA rankings for the first time in seven years.

Brazil have enjoyed a impressive revival since Tite replaced Dunga as their national team coach last year, winning all nine matches they have played under his leadership including eight World Cup qualifiers.

They continued their run in March with a 4-1 win in Uruguay and 3-0 win over Paraguay to become the first side to book their place at next year's World Cup in Russia with four games to spare.

Argentina lost their place after last week's 2-0 defeat in Bolivia which has left them struggling to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.

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