Singapore's goal looks a distant dream Pavkovic talks up his charges, but team's lack of pace and inability to create chances a huge worry

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2011 SEA Games, football, Group A

Malaysia 0 Singapore 0

JAKARTA - He walked into the room brow furrowed, lips pursed, looking far from happy.

But when Slobodan Pavkovic gave his take on the match, it seemed as if he was content.

The Singapore under-23 coach spoke of a performance that inspired belief and claimed he was happy enough with his players, who followed his strategy to the letter.

But Singapore's 0-0 draw with defending champions Malaysia in the opening Group A fixture of the 2011 SEA Games football competition surely raised eyebrows and prompted more questions.

The Singapore side were toothless in attack, they showed no pace anywhere around the pitch and there was little inter-play in the engine room to spark any sort of smart build-up.

The point earned against a solid Malaysian outfit was perhaps the only saving grace for the team, who have targeted a place in the final.

After hosts Indonesia's display of speed, verve and individual ability in the later encounter against Cambodia - they won 6-0 - the target does seem like wishful thinking on Singapore's part.

Especially with Indonesia and Thailand to come.

Pavkovic's post-match comments suggested there was hope.

"My players followed the strategy we prepared, and I can say that they did something good. We just didn't have the luck, and maybe the skill to score," the Serb said.

"I think at this moment against Malaysia we cannot do much better than this."

The industrious Nigel Vanu started ahead of Khairul Nizam as the only striker in what appeared to be a 5-2-2-1 formation, and the 22-year-old cut a lonely figure upfront.

Shahdan Sulaiman, a regular in the senior national squad, and Zulfahmi Arifin were limp and off the pace in midfield, and even captain Hariss Harun, tipped as a possible star of the tournament, ended the game a mere passenger.

Centre-back Safuwan Baharudin and national custodian Izwan Mahbud were the only players who stood out, assured and steady in defence.

"We couldn't play too open a game against an excellent team," countered Pavkovic. "For us it was important to have numbers behind so we did not concede, and we did it."

Malaysia, though, hardly looked like the team that ended the 2009 campaign with the gold medal.

They, too, seemed to lack ideas and players with pace to get behind the defence.

Safuwan was far and away the standout performer last night, composed and always able to sniff out danger.

The 20-year-old managed to lead the defence despite playing with a fever.

The team will face Cambodia tomorrow in what has become a must-win game, and Safuwan said: "Our performance can be better ... we need to be better with finishing the chances that we create.

"(If we go this way) it'll be hard to qualify from this group, but there are still three matches to go, and the one point that we got from the game is better than leaving empty handed."

Skipper Hariss spoke of his team's courage, when he said: "No one shied away from challenges ... the best thing to come out of this game is that we showed weren't afraid."

But his team's inability to score clearly weighed on his mind. He said: "I'm obviously disappointed. We should have nicked it."