The Lion City Sailors extended their lead at the top of the Singapore Premier League (SPL) standings to eight points with a straightforward 2-0 victory over Albirex Niigata (S) at Our Tampines Hub (OTH) on Friday, 25 April.

Goals in each half from Toni Datković and Shawal Anuar sealed the win for Aleksandar Ranković’s men against an Albirex side now winless in seven matches across all competitions.

“I’m very satisfied with the performance tonight – it’s 2-0, a clean sheet, and three points, that’s all that matters,” said Ranko. “We were the team mostly in the ascendancy, and it could’ve been more had we converted a couple more chances.”

The Sailors came into this match riding the high of reaching the Asian Football Confederation Champions League (ACL) Two final, becoming the first Singaporean club to qualify for a continental final.

Following a 30-minute delay due to the Lightning Warning System (LWS), the Sailors started strongly as Lennart Thy found himself through on goal and rounded Hassan Sunny in the 10th minute, but could only find the side netting.

Bart Ramselaar then had a couple of shots off target as the Sailors sought to gain a firm foothold in the match.

The breakthrough arrived in the 25th minute — and it was no surprise that Diogo Costa played a part. Moments after forcing a brilliant save from Hassan, the Portuguese full-back delivered a dangerous ball into the box from a corner routine, which Toni met with a thumping header for his fourth league goal of the season.

Albirex looked for a response after going behind, with Daniel Goh testing Izwan Mahbud, but it was a comfortable save for the Sailors’ custodian.

Goh did find the back of the net in the 38th minute, but his effort was ruled out for offside. Despite Albirex’s pressure towards the end of the half, the Sailors headed into the break with the lead firmly intact.

“When you come out to play matches like this — especially after the Champions League nights, and with the travel, the mental and physical side of things involved — to recharge every time is not easy,” said Ranko.

“I’m very proud of my boys. They do this week in and week out, and as a former player, I know just how hard it is to maintain that.”

The Sailors gradually upped the tempo of their attacks in the second half, with Maxime going close with a curling effort that was deflected away by Syahrul Sazali.

From the resulting corner, Lennart struck the post in the 61st minute as the Sailors’ search for a second goal continued.

That search ended in the 78th minute, courtesy of substitute Shawal Anuar, who shimmied inside the box and, after seeing his first effort saved by Hassan, kept his composure to slot home at the second attempt to give the Sailors some much-needed breathing space.

Albirex had Hassan to thank for keeping the scoreline respectable, with the former Sailors custodian producing smart saves to deny a Bart Ramselaar free-kick and a late effort from Abdul Rasaq Akeem, as the Sailors comfortably saw out the game with their two-goal lead intact.

The win marked a successful return to OTH in the SPL for the Sailors — their first appearance there since 2023, when Maxime memorably netted a first-half hat-trick at the same venue.

And while he did not get on the scoresheet this time around, Maxime’s strong influence and hard running throughout the game saw him named Man of the Match.

Speaking post-match, the Belgian said, “All the players are happy tonight. We’re in a good position now. It’s been a long time since I scored, but I don’t care — whenever we win, I’m happy.”

The Sailors’ healthy eight-point lead over title challengers BG Tampines Rovers puts Ranko’s side in a strong position heading into the final five league fixtures.

While three more wins would mathematically secure the SPL title, Ranko is not getting ahead of himself just yet.

“We will secure the SPL title whenever it happens. We’re not really calculating when — we’ll go match by match and see what happens in the end,” he said.

Next up for the Sailors is a midweek clash against Young Lions on Wednesday, 30 April, at the same venue — with the developmental side on course to avoid finishing bottom of the table for the first time since 2020.

At this stage of the season, three points are all that matters, and Ranko’s charges will once again approach the upcoming fixture with the same gusto.

“We look forward to every match — we just love playing,” said Ranko. “We’ve played close to 50 matches across all competitions this season, so at this point you can say we love playing more than training!”