Farhan Zulkifli

In this Malay name, there is no surname or family name. The name Zulklfli is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by their given name, Muhammad Farhan. The word "bin" or "binti"/"binte" means 'son of' or 'daughter of', respectively.

Muhammad Farhan bin Zulkifli (born 10 November 2002), better known as Farhan Zulkifli or just Farhan,is a Singaporean professional footballer who plays as a full-back or winger for Singapore Premier League club Hougang United and the Singapore national team.

Farhan Zulkifli

Farhan in 2013
Personal information
Full name	Muhammad Farhan bin Zulkifli
Date of birth	(2002-11-10) 10 November 2002 (age 22)
Place of birth	Singapore
Height	1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s)	Full-back / Winger
Team information
Current team	Hougang United
Youth career
2017	NFA U15
2018	Home United U16
2019	Hougang United U19
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019–	Hougang United	60	(3)
2023-2024	→ Young Lions (loan)	22	(4)
International career
2017–2018	Singapore U16	9	(1)
2019–	Singapore U19	6	(0)
2019–	Singapore U23	6	(1)
2023–	Singapore	2	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 September 2024

Club career

Hougang United

Farhan make his career debut coming on as a substitute and scored 12 minutes into his 2019 Singapore Premier League debut against Home United on 29 June 2019.^[1][2][3] At 16 years and 231 days, he became the SPL's second-youngest ever scorer then.^[4] Farhan was named in Goal Singapore's NxGn 2020 list as one of the country's biggest talents following his impressive start to life at Hougang.^[5] He made a further 11 appearances for Hougang in the 2019 season.

Farhan would start both the 2020 Singapore Premier League season opener and the 2020 Singapore Community Shield.^[6] However, the 2020 Singapore Premier League season hasn't been the best of years for Farhan, by his own admission. Farhan played in 12 matches and only had a solitary goal to his name.^[7]

Farhan would go on to play a total of 1767 minutes in the 2021 season bagging 20 appearances however, he failed to score a goal once during the 2021 Singapore Premier League season.

2022 for Farhan could be called his breakout year as he managed to make 18 appearances for the team and scoring 1 goal during the 5–1 thrashing of Young Lions. Farhan also played a crucial role in Hougang United's triumph over Tampines Rovers in the 2022 Singapore Cup Finals, helping his team stun Tampines Rovers 3–2 to clinch the cup.^[8]

Loan to Young Lions

On 12 July 2023, Farhan joined Young Lions on loan from Hougang United as he is undergoing his compulsory National Service. He was named the club vice-captain ahead of the 2024–25 Singapore Premier League season.

International career

Farhan was first called up to the Singapore national team in 2019, for the friendly against Jordan on 5 October and the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan on 10 and 15 October respectively.^[9][10][11]

In 2022, Farhan was called up to the national team for the 2022 AFF Championship tournament. He make his international debut against causeway rival, Malaysia.^[12]

Career statistics

Club

As of 10 October 2021.^[13]

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Hougang United	2019	Singapore Premier League	9	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	12	1
	2020	Singapore Premier League	13	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	14	1
	2021	Singapore Premier League	20	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	20	0
	2022	Singapore Premier League	18	1	6	1	0	0	0	0	24	2
	Total		60	2	9	0	1	0	0	0	70	4
Young Lions	2023	Singapore Premier League	7	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	10	1
	2024–25	Singapore Premier League	11	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	11	3
	Total		18	3	3	1	0	0	0	0	21	4
Career total			78	5	12	1	1	0	0	0	91	8

Notes

Honours

Club

Hougang United

• Singapore Cup: 2022

References

1. "Dream Singapore Premier League debut for Hougang United's Farhan Zulkifli thanks to wonder goal". The Straits Times. 29 June 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
2. "From NFA rejection to Singapore call-up aged 16 - Inside the meteoric rise of Hougang hotshot Farhan Zulkifli | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
3. Auto, Hermes (2 October 2019). "Football: Fleet-footed Cheetah Farhan Zulkifli on the fast track to becoming a Lion | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
4. "Impact 0352: Bouncing back from disappointment". Impact. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
5. "From Ilhan Fandi to Farhan Zulkifli - Meet the future of Singapore". Goal.com.
6. "From Hariss Harun to Khairin Nadim - Meet Singapore Premier League's youngest debutants | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
7. "Impact 0352: Bouncing back from disappointment". Impact. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
8. cue (19 November 2022). "Football: Hat-trick hero Krajcek hails late brother after helping Hougang beat Tampines in S'pore Cup final | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
9. "Football: Fleet-footed Cheetah Farhan Zulkifli on the fast track to becoming a Lion". The Straits Times. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
10. "Singapore coach tweaks squad for S. Arabia, Uzbekistan games". The New Paper. 27 September 2019. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
11. "From NFA rejection to Singapore call-up aged 16 - Inside the meteoric rise of Hougang hotshot Farhan Zulkifli". Goal.com.
12. Tan, Amanda (20 December 2022). "Five players in Singapore squad to take part in AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 for the first time". youthopia.sg. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
13. Farhan Zulkifli at Soccerway. Retrieved 15 April 2019.