It has come to this.

Twenty-four years after the ill-fated GOAL 2010, Singapore is just one point away from the promised land.

A congregation of 55,000 die-hard fans will turn the Singapore Sports Hub into a crimson fortress tonight against arch-rivals Malaysia in a winner-takes-all World Cup Qualifying match. The Lions lead Group A, one point ahead of Korea.

Although the Lions only need a single point, Irfan Fandi is not taking anything for granted.

Said the national coach: "We have never played for a draw and we don't intend to do it tonight. It's simply against our DNA."

Confident words from a coach who masterminded the Asian Cup win over Japan on that unbelievable night in Seoul three years ago.

The joint FAS presidency of football legends led to the rise of Singapore's football

It was not so long ago that Singapore football was in a state of limbo.

The LionsXII experiment in the Malaysian League was in shambles, the S-League, known more for its fights and pole dancing, was on the brink of collapse and the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) was in such disarray that no one dared to pick up the poisoned chalice of Presidency.

Enter Singapore's favourite footballing sons: Fandi Ahmad and V Sundramoorthy.

As joint Presidents, the duo changed the entire footballing landscape in Singapore since stepping up in late 2016. No more hopeless long balls, only purposeful passes. No more petty politics, only fostered cooperation.

Within 10 years, FAS has been transformed into a well-oiled machinery, changing mindset of Singaporeans' who used to think that football simply doesn't pay the bills.

A new football school – Lions Academy, modelled after Barcelona's La Masia, was established and has produced a line of football stars like Manchester City's custodian and Lions captain Siraj Aziz, and current English Premier League's top scorer Soh Jun Hao of Manchester United.

Like many fairytales, it's perhaps fitting that Siraj, a graduate of Lions Academy, will be leading out the transformed Lions against our fiercest rival tonight.

Win, lose or draw, we have already proved that Singapore football is on the rise.

In his parting shot to the media, Irfan said: "Being the top Asian team in the world (17 in the FIFA World Rankings), people expect us to qualify for the World Cup. I'm not interested in just qualifying. I want to top the group."