Singapore head coach V. Sundramoorthy has sent a strong signal that it is too soon to judge his performance, despite the Lions' disappointing results at the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup, culminating in a 2-1 defeat to Indonesia.
The four-time champions, who returned home on Saturday evening, were knocked out of the regional showcase 24 hours earlier after losing 2-1 to the Group A underdogs in Manila.
It means that Singapore have won only twice in 11 'A' internationals since Sundram took over in June, with seven defeats.
But the successful ex-LionsXII coach, who led the club outfit to the 2013 Malaysia Super League title, remains defiant, midway through his one-year contract.
When a reporter asked him about his immediate prospects, he replied: "How long have you been in your job. After six months, did people judge your future?"
Singapore's experienced squad included multiple AFF winners in the likes of Khairul Amri, Daniel Bennett, Baihakki Khaizan and Fahrudin Mustafic. But they came up short in terms of attack, with only one goal scored in their three Group A matches.
A photo posted by AFF Suzuki Cup (@affsuzukicup) on
"If you can't score goals, you can't win games," midfielder Hariss Harun, who captained the side against Indonesia, told The New Paper.
"We were unlucky [in the late 1-0 loss] against Thailand. But [against Indonesia], we blew it in the second half."
After taking a 1-0 lead into half-time against the Indonesians, Singapore had a couple of good chances to double their lead before the Merah Putih came back with late goals to Andik Vermansyah and Stefano Lilipaly.
Indonesia will face Vietnam in the last four over two legs on Dec. 3 and 7 while Myanmar play Thailand in the other semifinal on Dec. 4 and 8.