Young Lions vs Tanjong Pagar

Jalan Besar Stadium forms the backdrop for a bottom-half Singapore Premier League showdown between Young Lions and Tanjong Pagar.

Last season’s bottom-place finish in the Singapore Super League was no fluke as Young Lions continue to struggle in top-flight action, having won just once in 12 matches at the start of the 2023 campaign (D2, L9). Nailed to the foot of the table as the only side yet to hit double digits in terms of points (5) and morally crushed after three consecutive defeats ‘to nil,’ they look like a doomed outfit ahead of the kick-off. That’s not to mention that they’ve lost their last two league meetings with Tanjong by an aggregate score of 10-2. But a 4-2 win in this corresponding fixture in 2022 could offer Young Lions a glimmer of hope that they could end a four-game winless league run on home turf (D2, L2).

In the meantime, Tanjong Pagar failed to recover from a 2-0 halftime deficit in a 3-1 home defeat to Hougang United last time out, marking their fifth league loss in six matches (W1). But their solitary win in that sequence came on the road, as they scored three first-half goals in a hard-fought 3-2 victory at Geylang United. It’s been ‘all or nothing’ for Tanjong on the road this term (W2, L4), with only one of those results (wins/losses) seeing the winner keep a clean sheet. Indeed, high scoring has been a common theme in Tanjong’s away outings, with all six featuring over 2.5 goals. Given that four of those six contests witnessed at least one goal beyond the 75-minute mark, an action-packed finish could be on the cards.