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SINGAPORE – The Under-22 football team of the Republic has kept hope of qualifying for the AFC Under-23 Championship next year after defeating North Korea in Group G at a 1-1 draw Sunday, March 24 at Ulanbaatar in Mongolia.
The result leaves the group well placed for the last round of matches on Tuesday.
Fandi Ahmad's charges took a perfect start against North Korea after taking the lead in the first minute thanks to Ikhsan Fandi's solo effort at the MFF Football Center.
But the North Koreans, who are the ninth seeds in the qualifying tournament, equalized by Pak Kwang Hun in the seventh minute.
The Singapore boys, ranked 30th out of the 44 nations in qualifying, then showed a great fighting spirit to prevent their higher ranked opponents from scoring goals for the rest of the match.
They had two points in two games after a 1-1 draw against Hong Kong in the qualifying match on Friday. North Korea beat the other Group G team, Mongolia, 1-0, the same day.
Mongolia and Hong Kong have to face after the match Singapore-North Korea.
Singapore will play its last qualifying match on Tuesday against Mongolia, while North Korea will face Hong Kong.
The 11 group winners and the top four finalists will qualify for the Under 23 European Championship in Thailand in January. The first three of the tournament will qualify for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
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