Singapore: Tampines Rovers coach Steven Tan was beaming from ear to ear after arguably one of the best performances of his side's season so far in the 3-1 AFC Cup victory over Hanoi T&T at Jalan Besar Stadium.Ahmad Latiff scored twice for the hosts and although Gonzalo Marronkle pulled a goal back for Hanoi, veteran striker Aleksandar Duric wrapped up a win that sees them move four points clear of their rivals in the battle to qualify from Group G.
"The guys played almost a perfect match today. It was one of our best performances," said Tan.
"We could have scored more goals but more importantly, we got the win which was what we wanted. We need to keep our feet on the ground ahead of our next match (against Victory SC). We win that match and we go through."
Tan revealed that Latiff was suffering from an upset stomach hence his early substitution.
"Latiff gave us what we wanted but he can be better than that still. We need him and everyone to play like they did for the whole 90 minutes and not just for 20 or 30 minutes," he added.
The former Singapore international also sensed their opponents' discomfort with the pitch.
"We felt they had problems with the field. They were obviously not used to it and with the rain, it was very greasy," Tan said.
Duric reflected on an important result for club and country.
"We are carrying the Singapore flag as the only team in Asian competition and it was an important result for us. It was certainly one of our best performances, an almost perfect team performance," he said.
With 13 goals from 15 games in all competitions so far, Duric looks to be having yet another Indian summer in the twilight of his career.
"Yes I must say this is one of my best starts to the season. We have a good team spirit and we are performing very well every week," he added.
But he was looking no further than the next game in the tournament.
"We play Victory next week and every year the clubs from the Maldives are always improving," he said.
"We must be at our best and get the three points to seal our place in the next round."
Hanoi coach Phan Thanh Hung was in no doubt that the artificial surface at Jalan Besar played a key role in his team’s meek performance.
"There were two reasons for our loss today. One was the fact we conceded two goals very early and two, it was the pitch. We were simply not used to it," he said.
"That said, Tampines were much better today compared to how they played in Hanoi two weeks ago."
With the defeat, Hanoi are now four and six points behind Tampines and Muang Thong United respectively in the group standings and are now long shots to claim one of the two spots from Group G to progress to the knockout stages. Still, Thanh Hung remained defiant.
"We play Muang Thong in our next game. If we win that match, maybe we still have a chance," he added.
Hanoi captain Cristiano (Cristiano Rocha Canedo Roland) was less optimistic over their future.
"We have no chance now to go to the next round but we will still try our best in our last two matches," he said.
"It was a very difficult game today with the field as it made the game very fast."
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