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It was heartbreak for the Lions as they lost 4-2 to Indonesia in the second leg of the AFF Suzuki cup semi-finals on Saturday (Dec. 25) night at the National Stadium with about 10,000 people in attendance.

The aggregate score was 5-3 after the 1-1 first-leg draw on Wednesday, Dec. 22.

Singapore will not advance to the finals of the tournament.

The match, however, was full of surprising moments, leaving fans in the stadium and viewers at home at the edge of their seats.

First half

Indonesia's Ezra Walian scored an early goal for his side in the 11th minute.

Nearing the half-time mark, things took an unexpected turn as Lions defender Safuwan Baharudin was given a red card, upon receiving his second yellow in the game.

His dismissal was not without controversy. His first yellow card came after a clean tackle on Indonesia's Witan Sulaeman, and his second appeared to have been the result of arguing with the referee.

Singapore was then left with 10 men, but the Lions kept their heads up.

Right after the commotion, Lions midfielder and former Korean Song Ui-yong found the back of the net, giving Singapore the equaliser.

Second half

Singapore did not make any changes at the start of the second half, with the team still holding on with one man down.

Near the 60th minute, Lions coach Tatsuma Yoshida brought in Ikhsan Fandi, Faris Ramli, and Shawal Anuar in an effort to boost his side's offence.

But as things were slowly picking up for Singapore, defender Irfan Fandi was awarded a straight red card after a challenge on Indonesia's Irfan Jaya.

Singapore were then left with nine men on the pitch.

Yet in the 74th minute, with two of their best defenders out of the game, Lions' midfielder Shahdan Sulaiman stepped up to the plate and scored a free kick from outside the box, giving Singapore the lead.

Singapore held on to their lead until the 87th minute when Indonesia's Pratama Arhan scored an equaliser— a dubious goal as it appeared to have been scored from an offside position.

In a bizarre turn of events, Singapore was awarded a penalty at the 90th minute as Shawal Anuar was tripped in the penalty box, but Faris Ramli's shot was saved by Indonesian keeper Nadeo Winata in stoppage time.

Extra time

The match continued into extra time with a score of 2-2.

But a minute into extra time, the ball rebounded off Shawal and into his own goal, giving Indonesia the lead.

Right before the end of the first half of extra time, Indonesia's Egy Maulana Vikri scored another goal, giving his country a comfortable two-goal lead.

With two goals down and nine men on the pitch, Singapore's nightmare took a turn for the worse as goalkeeper Hassan Sunny was sent off after a foul on Indonesia's Irfan Jaya outside the box.

With eight men down and no goalkeeper, Singapore striker Ikhsan Fandi donned the gloves and took his position in front of the goal, managing to save the ball from an Indonesian free kick.

So much respect for Singapore!! They played really well today. Ikhsan Fandi from striker to goalkeeper. #AFFSuzukiCup2020 pic.twitter.com/cTx7qb19kQ

— Bayu Arisandy (@bayuarisandee) December 25, 2021

Soon after, the referee blew the final whistle.

Despite the loss, the Lions stayed behind on the pitch after the match to shake hands with their Indonesian counterparts.

The Singapore fans also stood in solidarity with their team as they sang the Singapore national anthem out loud at the National Stadium.

The last time Singapore was in the AFF Suzuki Cup final was in 2012.

Indonesia are playing their sixth final, but have yet to win one.

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Top images from FAS/IG.