Mr Bernard Tan, deputy president of the Football Association of Singapore (FAS), sums up the problem with Singapore football in this manner: It is not that we have deteriorated, but that other countries have overtaken us in mastering the modern game (What it will take to make S'pore football great again; July 14).

It is excuses like this that have left Singapore football in the pathetic state it is today.

It is true that football today is fundamentally a different game than that of the past. But the shift to a higher-tempo game did not happen overnight. It took decades.

So, why didn't the FAS make changes then? Less-developed countries, with less-modern facilities and fewer financial resources, were able to change with the times and up their game.

Most of the new council members were in the previous councils and have been in it for decades. Surely, they would have seen that we were lagging behind. Why didn't they stem the decline earlier?

Football fans are a forgiving bunch. All it takes is for the new council to admit that the previous council messed up, and to ask for a clean slate to put things right.

Winners accept 100 per cent responsibility. Losers find excuses. We will continue losing if we do not change our mindset.

Patrick Tan Siong Kuan