SINGAPORE – Lions coach Takayuki Nishigaya has developed a taste for peppery bak kut teh since arriving in Singapore in May, though he is still getting used to the heat and humidity and his English still needs work.

He has been taking daily online lessons for the past few months. His favourite English word? Together.

It is a fitting one for the coach, who is about to face his biggest test in the Asean Football Federation (AFF) Championship, which will see the Lions kick off their campaign against Myanmar on Saturday.

“If the players, backroom staff and fans are together as one team, anything can happen.

“We can achieve good results and beat stronger teams like how the underdogs did at the World Cup,” said the 49-year-old Japanese via a translator.

The Lions may be four-time Asean champions but at world No. 160, they are certainly underdogs now as South-east Asia’s seventh-ranked team.

Singapore have a perfect six wins against each of their first two opponents in Group B – Myanmar and Laos (on Tuesday).

They will need to maintain this record to be in a healthy position to qualify for the semi-finals.

Yet ahead of their opener against Myanmar, Nishigaya insisted his side can compete against regional powerhouses Vietnam and defending champions Thailand to challenge for a fifth title.

He told The Straits Times: “If we perform to our full capabilities, I am confident we can compete against any team in this competition.”

While Myanmar (political crisis), Malaysia and Thailand (unavailability of top players) may not be at full strength, he is wary of underestimating their rivals.

He said: “I understand how important this championship is to Singapore football.

“I understand the situation in our group and in some teams, and of course, we aim to go to the semi-finals again.

“But we must focus on getting the job done for the important opening match first.”

The Shizuoka native has a similar single-mindedness about his own work, even if his tenure began with scepticism over his CV which included stints at only lower-tier Japanese clubs and no previous international experience.

His Asian Cup qualifying assignment was not helped by his late appointment and the lack of time to impart his philosophy of “aggressive and possessive football”.

The Lions won just once in his first six matches in charge.

Their Dec 1-12 training camp in Chiba, Japan, was his first extended period with them.

He took about a week to work on their conditioning before testing out concepts, set pieces and line-ups.

The Lions lost 7-3 to J3 League side YSCC Yokohama and then 5-1 and 2-0 to Ryutsu Keizai University, but Nishigaya was not overly concerned with the results.

He said: “We used these matches to look at all 29 players we took there, and this was our chance to experiment with different things which we won’t be able to do once the tournament starts.”

There were glimpses of positive football in their 3-1 friendly win over the Maldives at Jalan Besar on Dec 17 – despite the loss of key striker Ikhsan Fandi and midfielder Adam Swandi through serious knee injuries.

He declared that the Lions are “70 per cent close to where I want them to be”.

Areas of improvement include game management during poor spells, as he added: “When we are playing well, we look good and confident, but there will be times when our performances drop...

“We can do better to maintain our confidence and belief throughout the match.”

The Maldives game was the first time he led the team before home fans, and he wants them to back his team again.

He said: “I felt heartened and proud during the Maldives game and I hope to see a full house against Myanmar and Vietnam (on Dec 30), as that will be special and a big boost for the team.”

Group B opponents Malaysia kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 win over Myanmar at the Thuwanna Stadium on Wednesday, while 2018 champions Vietnam trounced Laos 6-0 at the Laos National Stadium in Vientiane.