Bernd Stange with Hassan Sunny (Photo by Liew Tong Leng for Yahoo)
By Teng Kiat
Singapore's new National Stadium at the Sports Hub may be capable of hosting many different events, but national football coach Bernd Stange only has one aim: to bring the famous Kallang Roar back to the terraces.
The German will take charge of a Singapore Selection side that will face Italian giants Juventus this Saturday in the first football match to be played at the venue. Speaking at the pre-match press conference on Thursday evening, Stange noted that while the process of improving Singapore football will 'take some time', he hopes they can start churning out good displays to get the crowds flocking back - starting against the Serie A champions.
'We are very proud to have a new stadium and we need top-class performances to bring this stadium to life,' he asserted.
'It's not a stadium for Bruno Mars or Shakira; we need the Kallang Roar back.'
Eighteen Singaporean players - 12 of whom are 24 or below - have been included in the 21-man squad and Stange believes they will form the basis of the 'future of Singapore football'.
'I see this match as part of our preparations for the highlights we have this year: the Asian Games in Korea and even the Suzuki Cup,' he stated.
'And If you follow the age of our players, you will find out that it's a team of the future, the team for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers, for the Asian Cup.'
Lions midfielder Hariss Harun will be one of those expected to lead a youthful national team in future and he cannot wait to learn from one of the best club sides in the world.
'I'm really excited and it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,' the Selection vice-captain said. 'We don't really play teams of this caliber very often [and] it's a good opportunity to make the most of it.'
Goalkeeper Hassan Sunny said it would 'not be easy' coming up against dead-ball master Andrea Pirlo and his fearsome free-kicks, but was looking forward to facing another Italian legend.
'It's a big honour to play against World Cup stars, especially [Gianluigi] Buffon, whom I look up to,' the Warriors star said. 'I hope we can enjoy the game and learn as much as we can.'
With big-name stars like Pirlo, Arturo Vidal, Paul Pogba, Carlos Tevez and Buffon in tow, the Bianconeri will be expected to provide a stern test to the Selection side on the last stop of an Asia-Pacific tour that has seen them play in Australia and Indonesia.
New coach Massimiliano Allegri is looking forward to giving all members of his squad their fair share of playing time in a 'beautiful' stadium, before they head home to begin their title defence.
'The stadium is super-modern with fantastic facilities,' he praised. 'This game is an important test for our preparations. All matches are different and need to be faced in the right way.'
The former AC Milan boss was flanked by captain Buffon and striker Fernando Llorente, who both acknowledged that it will not be easy to win a fourth consecutive Scudetto.
' Last year was an amazing season and maybe unrepeatable,' Buffon said. 'Roma and Napoli are both getting stronger and have more ambition, they will definitely be stronger this year and may be possible winners.'
' We need to continue working as we have done so far... but the team has been bolstered by the arrival of quality players and we could become even stronger,' Llorente added.
It appears that they can at least count on the services on combative midfielder Vidal, who has become an influential figure since his arrival from Bayer Leverkusen in 2011. The Chilean has been persistently linked with a move away from Turin in the current transfer window, notably to Manchester United, but Allegri is confident he will stay.
'Arturo Vidal is now training with the team,' Allegri stated simply. 'He's going to stay at Juventus.'
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