[25th Canon Lion City Cup] No slots for both Baby Cubs in the semis

(This entry is formulated based on the media releases issued by Muse PR Pte Ltd, the PR agency of the mentioned event with images depicted in this entry provided via the same releases)

Corinthians (in white) are favourites of the tournament

Since the introduction of the present format in 2011, the semi-finals will not feature any two of the Singapore representative sides (i.e.: NFA U15 and NFA U16) in the 25th Canon Lion City with the conclusion of the group stages.

Following three days of group stages competition, the likes of English side Arsenal, Eintracht Frankfurt of Germany, Brazil's SC Corinthians and Dutch club PSV Eindhoven emerged from the pack to qualify for the final four spot with both local sides to be completing in the 5th/6th placing match on coming Sunday at the Jalan Besar Stadium.

SC Corinthians topped the Group B ladder on a clean sweep with two victories over their opponents with no goal conceded in the process (defeated NFA U15 7-0, defeated PSV Eindhoven 2-0), while PSV clinched the last four spot on a better goal difference over coach Nazri Nasir's boys, despite losing and draw a game each as well.

However, Corinthians' coach Marcio Zarnadi remained unfazed of that hot favourite tag.

In the press release issued by the organizers after beating PSV, coach Zarnadi said: “It is still hard to say we’re favourites. At this level, all teams are playing well. We will improve game after game. Although we arrive for this tournament with a few injuries, the team has grown and my players have more to show.”

Irfan (no 17) scored his second goal of the campaign

Up next for the Brazilians will see them facing the challenge from Arsenal who qualified for the next stage at the expenses of the NFA U16 who were not able to beat Eintracht Frankfurt on a required two goal margin to ensure their progression.

For large part of the game, the Singapore side were on a two goal lead after goals from Irfan Fandi and Andin Addie in the first half placed them on a cushion and that was not until the 78th minute saw Marvin Diehl pulled one back for the Germans to crush any hope for the home side.

Marvin Diehl's (left) late strike broke hearts of many

A visibly downcast U16 coach Robin Chitrakar expressed his disappointment after the match.

“We did well in the first half. It is heartbreaking to win the match and not qualify. The mood in the dressing room wasn’t the best. There were some tears from the players. But this team needs to build on their performance in this tournament and progress.” said the former national defender in the media release made known after the match.

As the results, here are the fixtures for the semi-final matches to be played on Friday (14th of June).

• Semi-Final Match 1: SC Corinthians vs Arsenal (Kick-Off 1800hrs)
• Semi-Final Match 2: Eintracht Frankfurt vs PSV Eindhoven (2045hrs)

Both matches will be held at the Jalan Besar Stadium.