2019 Hougang United FC season
# 2019 Hougang United FC season

The 2019 season is Hougang United's 22nd consecutive season in the top flight of Singapore football and in the S.League. Along with the S.League, the club will also compete in the Singapore Cup.

## Squad

### S.League Squad

| No. | Name | Date of Birth (Age) | Previous Club | Contract Since | Contract End |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Goalkeepers |||||||
| 1 | Heng How Meng $^{U23}$ | | Tiong Bahru FC (NFL) | 2019 | |
| 13 | Ridhuan Barudin $^{>30}$ | (1987-03-23) 23 March 1987 (age 36) | Tampines Rovers | 2015 | 2019 |
| 18 | Khairulhin Khalid | (1991-07-18) 18 July 1991 (age 32) | LionsXII | 2016 | 2019 |
| Defenders |||||||
| 2 | Alif Iskandar $^{U23}$ | | NFA U18 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 3 | Afiq Yunos | (1990-12-10) 10 December 1990 (age 32) | Geylang International | 2019 | |
| 5 | Kong Ho-won $^{U23}$ | (1997-09-04) 4 September 1997 (age 25) | Chung-Ang University | 2019 | |
| 8 | Hafiz Sujad | (1990-11-01) 1 November 1990 (age 32) | Tampines Rovers | 2019 | |
| 11 | Nazrul Nazari | (1991-02-11) 11 February 1991 (age 32) | LionsXII | 2016 | 2019 |
| 12 | Fabian Kwok | (1989-03-17) 17 March 1989 (age 34) | Tampines Rovers | 2017 | 2019 |
| 15 | Jordan Nicolas Vestering $^{U23}$ | (2000-09-25) 25 September 2000 (age 22) | NFA U18 | 2018 | 2019 |
| 16 | Justin Hui $^{U23}$ | (1998-02-17) 17 February 1998 (age 25) | Youth Team | 2017 | 2019 |
| 17 | Faiz Salleh | (1992-07-17) 17 July 1992 (age 31) | Young Lions FC | 2014 | 2019 |
| 20 | Muhaimin Suhaimi | (1995-02-20) 20 February 1995 (age 28) | Young Lions FC | 2018 | 2019 |
| 27 | Azhar Manap $^{U23}$ | (1999-07-22) 22 July 1999 (age 24) | | 2019 | 2019 |
| Midfielders |||||||
| 4 | Afiq Noor | (1993-12-25) 25 December 1993 (age 29) | Tiong Bahru FC (NFL) | 2019 | 2019 |
| 6 | Anumanthan Kumar | (1994-07-14) 14 July 1994 (age 29) | Home United | 2019 | 2019 |
| 7 | Shahfiq Ghani | (1992-03-17) 17 March 1992 (age 31) | Geylang International | 2018 | 2019 |
| 21 | Nikesh Singh Sidhu $^{U23}$ | (1999-02-24) 24 February 1999 (age 24) | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 22 | Mahathir Azeman $^{U23}$ | (1996-01-17) 17 January 1996 (age 27) | Balestier Khalsa | 2019 | 2019 |
| 23 | Zulfahmi Arifin | (1991-10-05) 5 October 1991 (age 31) | Chonburi F.C. | 2019 | |
| 24 | Amir Zalani $^{U23}$ | (1996-12-04) 4 December 1996 (age 26) | Home United | 2017 | 2019 |
| 25 | Timothy David Yeo $^{U23}$ | (2000-10-19) 19 October 2000 (age 22) | NFA U18 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 28 | Karthik Raj $^{U23}$ | (1997-08-01) 1 August 1997 (age 25) | | 2019 | 2019 |
| Strikers |||||||
| 9 | Stipe Plazibat | (1989-08-31) 31 August 1989 (age 33) | NK Solin | 2019 | 2019 |
| 10 | Fazrul Nawaz | (1985-04-17) 17 April 1985 (age 38) | Tampines Rovers | 2018 | 2019 |
| 14 | Iqbal Hussain | (1993-06-06) 6 June 1993 (age 30) | Young Lions FC | 2016 | 2019 |
| 19 | Faris Ramli | (1992-08-24) 24 August 1992 (age 30) | Perlis Northern Lions F.C. | 2019 | 2019 |
| 26 | Paulin Mbaye $^{U23}$ | | SCC Firsts (Cosmo League) | 2019 | |

### U19 Squad

| No. | Name | Date of Birth (Age) | Previous Club | Contract Since | Contract End |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Goalkeepers |||||||
| 58 | Harith Aniq $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 59 | Desmond Ong $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 60 | Nawawi Rafied $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| Defenders |||||||
| 36 | Harhys Stewart $^{U19}$ | (2001-03-20) 20 March 2001 (age 22) | NFA U17 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 38 | Sahffee Jubpre $^{U19}$ | (2001-03-31) 31 March 2001 (age 22) | NFA U17 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 39 | Amirul Hamizan $^{U19}$ | (2001-03-31) 31 March 2001 (age 22) | NFA U17 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 51 | Tahalif Jabar $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 57 | Halfee Hilmi $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| Midfielders |||||||
| 37 | Winchell Ng $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 40 | Nur Irfan $^{U19}$ | | Balestier Khalsa U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 41 | Khairul Ikhwan $^{U19}$ | (2001-06-17) 17 June 2001 (age 22) | NFA U17 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 42 | George Ng $^{U19}$ | | Balestier Khalsa U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 43 | Farhan Zulkifli $^{U19}$ | (2002-11-10) 10 November 2002 (age 20) | Home United U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 46 | Luca Lichtenberger $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 47 | Nabil Nazree $^{U19}$ | | Balestier Khalsa U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 48 | Hairil Sufi $^{U19}$ | | Tampines Rovers U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 49 | Farhan Azman $^{U19}$ | | NFA U17 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 50 | Affian Atan $^{U19}$ | | Home United U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 52 | Farhan Jalaludeen $^{U19}$ | | Balestier Khalsa U19 | 2019 | 2019 |
| 53 | Jarrel Ong Jia Wei $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 57 | Halfee Hilmi $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| Strikers |||||||
| 44 | Nor Hakim $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 45 | Josiah Daniel $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 54 | Qayyum Rolfshyan $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |
| 55 | Shiekh Ibrahim $^{U19}$ | | Youth Team | 2019 | 2019 |

## Coaching staff

| Position | Name |
| - | - |
| Head Coach | Clement Teo |
| Assistant Coach | Salim Moin |
| Head of Youth (COE) | Robin Chitrakar |
| U19 Coach | Winston Yap |
| U16 Coach | Han Yiguang |
| Fitness Coach | |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Lim Queen Cher |
| General Manager | Matthew Tay |
| Team Manager | Clement Teo |
| Sports Trainer | Thomas Pang |
| Sports Trainer | Ryan Wang |
| Kitman | Wan Azlan |

## Transfers

### Pre-season transfers

**ln**

| Position | Player | Transferred from | Ref |
| - | - | - | - |
| GK | Heng How Meng | Tiong Bahru FC (NFL) | |
| DF | Afiq Yunos | Tampines Rovers | Undisclosed |
| DF | Hafiz Abu Sujad | Tampines Rovers | Free |
| DF | Zulfahmi Arifin | Chonburi F.C. | Free |
| DF | Alif Iskandar | NFA U18 | |
| DF | Ariyan Shamsuddin | Garena Young Lions | Loan Return |
| DF | Kong Ho-won | Chung-Ang University | |
| MF | Afiq Noor | Tiong Bahru FC (NFL) | |
| MF | Mahathir Azeman | Free Agent | |
| MF | Anumanthan Kumar | Home United | End of NS |
| MF | Timothy David Yeo | NFA U18 | |
| FW | Fazrul Nawaz | Tampines Rovers | $50,000. 2 Years contract till 2019 |
| FW | Stipe Plazibat | NK Solin | |
| FW | Rafael Ramazotti | PKNS FC | Free |
| FW | Faris Ramli | Perlis Northern Lions F.C. | Free |

Note 1: Fazrul Nawaz returned to the team after the loan and subsequently complete the transfer.

Note 2: Ariyan Shamsuddin returned to the team after being loaned to Garena Young Lions in 2018. However, he was released for the season.

Note 3: Rafael Ramazotti was initially signed but left the club without paying off compensation to sign for Mexican club.

**Out**

| Position | Player | Transferred To | Ref |
| - | - | - | - |
| GK | Zulfairuuz Rudy | Tampines Rovers | |
| DF | Gerald Ting | | |
| DF | Asraf Zahid | Garena Young Lions | Free |
| DF | Ashrul Syafeeq | | |
| DF | Syaqir Sulaiman | GFA Sporting Westlake (NFL D1) | |
| DF | Ariyan Shamsuddin | SAFSA (NFL D1) | Free |
| DF | Illyas Lee | Balestier Khalsa | [11] [12] |
| MF | Jordan Chan | Balestier Khalsa | |
| MF | Nurhilmi Jasni | Tiong Bahru FC (NFL D1) | Free |
| MF | Stanely Ng | | |
| MF | Syahiran Miswan | Geylang International | |
| FW | Fazrul Nawaz | Tampines Rovers | Loan Return |
| FW | Antonie Viterale | FC Lugano | Free |
| FW | Jang Jo-yoon | Retired | |
| FW | Daniel Goh Ji Xiong | Balestier Khalsa | Free |
| FW | Fareez Farhan | Geylang International | Free |
| FW | Syukri Bashir | Garena Young Lions | Free |
| FW | Idraki Adnan | SAFSA (NS) | |
| FW | Rafael Ramazotti | FC Juarez | Vacated Apartment |

**Retained**

| Position | Player | Ref |
| - | - | - |
| GK | Khairulhin Khalid | 2 Years contract signed in 2018 |
| MF | Muhaimin Suhaimi | 2 Years contract signed in 2018 |
| FW | Shahfiq Ghani | 2 Years contract signed in 2018 |
| FW | Iqbal Hussain | 2 Years contract signed in 2018 |

**Extension**

| Position | Player |
| - | - |
| GK | Ridhuan Barudin |
| DF | Faiz Salleh |
| MF | Amir Zalani |
| MF | Fabian Kwok |
| MF | Justin Hui |

**Promoted**

| Position | Player | Ref |
| - | - | - |
| MF | Nikesh Singh Sidhu | |
| FW | Idraki Adnan | |

Note 1: Idraki Adnan was signed to the 2019 season but subsequently released.

**Trial**

| Position | Player | Trial @ | Ref |
| - | - | - | - |
| FW | Fareez Farhan | Chainat Hornbill F.C. | |
| FW | Iqbal Hussain | Chainat Hornbill F.C. | |

### Mid-season transfer

**In**

| Position | Player | Transferred From |
| - | - | - |
| FW | Pauline Mbaye | SCC First (Cosmo League) |
| MF | Azhar Manap | Free Agent |
| MF | Karthik Raj | Free Agent |

## Friendlies

### Pre-Season Friendly

Win  Draw  Loss

Tour of Cambodia - 12 to 16 February

### Mid-Season Friendly

Win  Draw  Loss

## Team statistics

### Appearances and goals

    As of 29 September 2018.

| No. | Pos. | Player | Sleague | Sleague | Singapore Cup | Singapore Cup | Total | Total |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| No. | Pos. | Player | Apps. | Goals | Apps. | Goals | Apps. | Goals |
| 1 | GK | Heng How Meng | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | Alif Iskandar | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | Afiq Yunos | 19 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 2 |
| 4 | MF | Afiq Noor | 14(3) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | Kong Ho-won | 21 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 24 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | Anumanthan Kumar | 10(6) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 1 |
| 7 | MF | Shahfiq Ghani | 1(9) | 8 | 0(2) | 0 | 12 | 8 |
| 8 | DF | Hafiz Sujad | 10(9) | 2 | 0(2) | 0 | 21 | 2 |
| 9 | FW | Stipe Plazibat | 20(1) | 9 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 9 |
| 10 | FW | Fazrul Nawaz | 5(8) | 5 | 0(2) | 0 | 15 | 5 |
| 11 | DF | Nazrul Nazari | 13(3) | 2 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 12 | DF | Fabian Kwok | 10(7) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 2 |
| 13 | GK | Ridhuan Barudin | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | Iqbal Hussain | 1(11) | 1 | 0(2) | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| 15 | DF | Jordan Nicolas Vestering | 15 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 18 | 1 |
| 16 | DF | Justin Hui | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | DF | Faiz Salleh | 0(2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 18 | GK | Khairulhin Khalid | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | Faris Ramli | 21(3) | 16 | 3 | 1 | 27 | 17 |
| 20 | DF | Muhaimin Suhaimi | 4(5) | 0 | 0(1) | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| 21 | MF | Nikesh Singh Sidhu | 18 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 1 |
| 22 | MF | Mahathir Azeman | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| 23 | MF | Zulfahmi Arifin | 19(1) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 23 | 1 |
| 24 | MF | Amir Zalani | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 3 |
| 25 | MF | Timothy David Yeo | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 26 | FW | Paulin Mbaye | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 43 | MF | Farhan Zulkifli | 9 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
| 44 | MF | Nor Hakim | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |

Note 1: Zulfahmi Arifin scored an own goal against Tampines Rovers on 3/3/2019.

## Competitions

### Overview

| Competition | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Competition | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| Singapore Premier League | 24 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 58 | 45 | +13 | 054.17 |
| Singapore Cup | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 033.33 |
| Total | 27 | 14 | 4 | 9 | 60 | 49 | +11 | 051.85 |

### Singapore Premier League

Win  Draw  Loss

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | DPMM (C) | 24 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 51 | 25 | +26 | 50 | |
| 2 | Tampines Rovers | 24 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 52 | 29 | +23 | 44 | Qualification for AFC Champions League preliminary round 1 |
| 3 | Hougang United | 24 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 58 | 45 | +13 | 43 | Qualification for AFC Cup group stage |
| 4 | Albirex Niigata (S) | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 36 | 25 | +11 | 41 | |
| 5 | Geylang International | 24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 33 | |

* 1 2 The two foreign clubs – Albirex Niigata (S) and DPMM – as well as the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) under-21 team, Young Lions, are ineligible for any AFC competition spots.

### Singapore Cup

Win  Draw  Loss

