Football: Singapore’s centralised training team to join up before the September FIFA match period

SINGAPORE: Singapore men’s national interim head coach Gavin Lee has recruited 25 local players to form a centralised training team in preparation for the upcoming FIFA window matches in September against Malaysia and Myanmar. These games are aimed at gearing up the national team for their AFC Asian Cup qualifier in October against India.

Alongside Coach Lee, former Singapore player Fahrudin Mustafic will be joining as well. He worked with Lee beforehand as an assistant coach at the BG Tampines Rovers from 2019 until June 2025.

With this, Coach Lee admitted: “This window is about being purposeful with what we do every single day — in training and in those preparation games — to put ourselves in a good position to qualify for the Asian Cup. We’ve not done it before, and that’s something we really want to aspire to.” 

“The October window is very important because there are six points to play for, and that can be very, very crucial for our qualification,” the 34-year-old coach added.  

The Causeway Derby, another term used to call the football rivalry between Singapore and Malaysia, will happen at the Bukit Jalil National Stadium on Sep 4 at 9 p.m. Afterwards, the Lions will battle against Myanmar in a closed-door match on Sep 9. The squad that will be playing for the September games will be announced on Aug 31. 

Coach Lee acknowledged that Malaysia is a strong team, and the Causeway Derby should encourage the team to do their very best. Furthermore, he also emphasised that the match against Myanmar is equally important, as it gives them a chance to learn from different strategies on how they want to step up their game. 

Here are the names and clubs of the athletes who will participate in the centralised training squad: 

1. Izwan Mahbud of Lion City Sailors
2. Rudy Khairullah of Geylang International
3. Syazwan Buhari of BG Tampines Rovers
4. Akram Azman of Lion City Sailors
5. Amirul Adli of BG Tampines Rovers
6. Irfan Najeeb of BG Tampines Rovers
7. Nazrul Nazari of Geylang International
8. Ryaan Sanizal of Hougang United
9. Safuwan Baharudin of Lion City Sailors
10. Lionel Tan of Lion City Sailors
11. Darren Teh of Balestier Khalsa
12. Joel Chew of BG Tampines Rovers
13. Farhan Zulkifli of Hougang United
14. Jared Gallagher of Albirex Niigata (S)
15. Hami Syahin of Lion City Sailors
16. Glenn Kweh of BG Tampines Rovers
17. Jacob Mahler of BG Tampines Rovers
18. Naqiuddin Eunos of Tanjong Pagar United
19. Shah Shahiran of BG Tampines Rovers
20. Song Uiyoung of Lion City Sailors
21. Syed Firdaus Hassan of Albirex Niigata (S)
22. Ignatius Ang of Balestier Khalsa
23. Abdul Rasaq Akeem of Lion City Sailors
24. Shawal Anuar of Lion City Sailors
25. Taufik Suparno of BG Tampines Rovers

On social media, Coach Lee further remarked: “I think what guides our planning and our intentions for the two windows are ultimately the big picture… and that’s for us to put ourselves in as good of a position to qualify for the AFC Asian Cup as possible.” 

The coach said that the team has not qualified for the competition before, and it is something that the team would want to achieve. 

Netizens expressed their thoughts and opinions in the comments. One netizen urged the coach to get the athletes to improve their fitness, mentality, and courage. 

Another netizen hoped that Coach Lee would be patient with the athletes, and that he would watch, read, and analyse the strengths of their opponents in advance, and understand the team’s weaknesses and apply the adjustments needed in every game. 

Fans can buy tickets for the Causeway Derby at www.tickethotline.com.my and print them at home. Moreover, away fans will have seats in Block 126 and Block 127, and they can enter through Gate E using a QR code scan at the stadium.