Bacina: We missed Shahdan

Tampines Rovers boss Nenad Bacina was not as upset despite the fact his side suffered back-to-back defeats, following their loss to Selangor in the AFC Cup last time out.

“It is very difficult to play against a team that is very defensive and Tanjong Pagar were good at doing that tonight,” he said.

Despite the defeat, the Croatian felt that his team controlled the game and were more aggressive.

“The goal we conceded was due to a misunderstanding in the defence and this is not a sign of things falling apart," he calmly explained.

“We were missing several key players like Shahdan Sulaiman, Ismadi Mukthar and Firdaus Kasman who would have added more creativity to find the goals."

"He's (Shahdan Sulaiman) the one who brings the creatibity."

Before he left the room, Bacina pointed out that Tampines are still confident of winning the title as they are still at the top of the league, and will be the team for the rest to chase.