Lion City Sailors on the Rise
Aleksandar Rankovic has warned that Lion City Sailors FC are ready to challenge the best after the Singapore side advanced to the AFC Champions League Two 2024/25 quarter-finals in emphatic fashion last Thursday.
Leading 3-2 from the first leg, Sailors produced a scintillating performance to defeat Thailand's Muangthong United 4-0 in the return leg of their Round of 16 tie with Rankovic confidently targeting an extended run, with Japan's Sanfrecce Hiroshima up next for his side.
"Looking at both matches we played against them, I think it was obvious that we deserved to go through," said Rankovic.
"In the first match, we played very well aside from the red card, and today, there was no doubt about who should advance.
"I'm the head coach, but don't forget I have a lot of support staff behind me. There are so many people involved in this achievement, which makes me even prouder to be a part of it."
The emphatic win at Jalan Besar Stadium was achieved courtesy of a brace from Shawal Anuar with Bart Ramselaar and Maxime Lestienne also getting on the scoresheet.
"We've already shown that we can compete with anyone, so we'll go there with our heads held high, give our best performance, and see what happens."
Having conceded in the first minute in the first leg, Muangthong were guilty of giving a goal away in the third minute on Thursday with head coach Gino Lettieri admitting that it led to his side losing confidence.
"It's deja vu, the first game, we conceded after 30 seconds, same here today, incredible," said Lettieri. "When you play at this level, against a technical side like (the Sailors), it's hard to come back from that."