The call to aggression comes from Noh Alam Shah, as Singapore prepare to battle Vietnam in the second leg of their Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup semi-final at the National Stadium tomorrow.

The Lions had put up a tame display in the first leg in Hanoi, where they drew 0-0 with the hosts.

Alam Shah, who came on as a substitute on Wednesday, revealed his frustration in cyberspace after the match.

The fiery striker wrote 'Noh Alam Shah cannot wait to thrash Vietnam on Sunday' in the Facebook website.

And that was exactly how he felt when he met The Straits Times at the team hotel yesterday.

'Vietnam didn't show us any respect, even though we're the defending champions,' said the 28-year-old.

'We need to show them what we can do, and I'm sure the whole team are raring to go after the disappointing result in Hanoi.'

In Wednesday's match, Henrique Calisto's men hunted down every Singapore player with the ball, and gave them little time to settle into their normal passing game.

Possession was squandered easily, as the Vietnamese wingers ran riot down the flanks.

Alam Shah, whose physical style of play unsettled his opponents, was one of the few bright sparks to come out of that lacklustre performance.

His desire to make an impact was clear for all to see. Within two minutes of his introduction for Indra Sahdan Daud, he found himself in the referee's book for an overly robust challenge.

He explained: 'We were taking things a little too easy, so I went in hard to make a point and to inspire my teammates.'

The Tampines Rovers striker, who claims to have recovered fully from his hamstring injury, is not guaranteed a starting place tomorrow.

Indra and Agu Casmir are the other fit forwards in Raddy Avramovic's side.

But Alam Shah knows that a repeat of the insipid first-leg display will all but end his team's hopes of snagging a record fourth Asean title.

'We need guts to hold on to the ball, and we have to stick our feet into those tackles,' he added. 'We must not fear them if we want to win.'

Midfielder John Wilkinson, who sat out the game in Hanoi because of a calf injury, also urged his teammates to be bold.

He said: 'As soon as the match kicks off, we have to set our stall out. We have to let our opponents know that we're up for the fight.'

Wilkinson, 29, will undergo acupuncture and heat therapy over the weekend under the supervision of a Singapore Sports Council doctor, in a bid to speed up his recovery.

A last-minute fitness test just before kick-off tomorrow will determine whether or not he gets to play.

'My chances are 50-50,' he said.

Avramovic, who did not hide his disappointment with his team in Hanoi, is confident the draw was just a blip.

'In the last two Cup campaigns, we drew more games than we did in this tournament,' he noted. 'We are not a bad team. If we play to our standards on Sunday, we can make it to the final.'

tvoon@sph.com.sg