Harimau Muda vs Tampines Rovers

(June 13, Friday, 8.45pm, Pasir Gudang Stadium)

Written by: Kenneth Ho

Harimau Muda’s youngsters will continue their baptism of fire in a professional league as they face reigning Great Eastern Yeo’s S.league champions Tampines Rovers at their home ground.

In the reverse fixture, Harimau gave the Stags a scare when they took a 2-0 lead against the then-hosts, before Tampines roared back with three goals to stun them.

This should not be the case this time, as Rafi Ali’s charges seem to be a more compact unit under his charge, while still playing an attacking game.

With the arrival of Jake Butler, the Stags have found a proper defensive midfielder to fill the gap left by Mustafic Fahrudin, who can now comfortably sit in defence and lead his backline.

This allows the Stags to pour forward with assurance that their back is properly shielded, and with Jozef Kaplan in the mix now, it will be hard to bet against the Stags scoring a goal or two.

Harimau have shown glimpses of brilliance upfront this season, but their porous defence leaves much to be desired.

Having last played Home United, Harimau displayed good movements up front, but were sluggish at the back which allowed the likes of Fazrul Nawaz to run riot.

Hopefully, they would have learnt from that lesson and not allow Noh Alam Shah and company much space. If that is the case, the Stags will be in for a tough time in this game.

Key Men To Watch

Harimau Muda: Ramzi Sufian

If the Young Tigers are unable to hold back the Stags, they can hope to at least score the goals required for a result, be it a draw or win.

This youngster has scored six goals in as many games, and he is potentially the most dangerous man Harimau has on board now.

The striker is a careful passer, and that is why he has a high success rate of passes completed (76%). If there is anyone going to shine against the Stags, Ramzi should be one of them.

Tampines Rovers: Jozef Kaplan

The former Geylang International captain has yet to open his account, but this is a good chance for him to do so. The statistics from his last game has not been released, but based on what has been seen, the forward has the capability to make things happen.

A good dribbler of the ball, Kaplan too possesses a mean shot, and he should easily pose a threat to Harimau.

Harimau Muda – LLDLW

10/6/14    Home United 3-0 Harimau Muda

5/6/14        Harimau Muda 2-4 Warriors FC

29/5/14    Harimau Muda (5) 1-1 (6P) (AET) Tampines Rovers (RHB Singapore Cup)

23/5/14    Harimau Muda 1-4 Albirex Niigata (S)

16/5/14    Tanjong Pagar United 1-2 Harimau Muda

Tampines Rovers – WWDWD

10/6/14    Tampines Rovers 2-1 Brunei DPMM

6/6/14        Geylang International 1-0 Tampines Rovers

29/5/14    Harimau Muda (5) 1-1 (6P) (AET) Tampines Rovers (RHB Singapore Cup)

23/5/14    Courts Young Lions 1-2 Tampines Rovers

18/5/14    Home United 2-2 Tampines Rovers

Head to Head (S.League)

27/3/14    Tampines Rovers 3-2 Harimau Muda

3/7/13        Harimau Muda 3-0 Tampines Rovers

24/3/13    Tampines Rovers 2-1 Harimau Muda

2/11/12    Tampines Rovers 1-0 Harimau Muda

13/5/12    Harimau Muda 2-3 Tampines Rovers