Shahdan Sulaiman

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

Shahdan Sulaiman

Personal information
Full name	Shahdan bin Sulaiman [1]
Date of birth	(1988-05-09) 9 May 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth	Singapore
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Hougang United
Number	8
Youth career
2000–2005	National Football Academy
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2006–2008	Tampines Rovers	52	(4)
2009–2010	Home United	37	(1)
2010–2011	Tampines Rovers	39	(5)
2011	Young Lions	13	(2)
2012	LionsXII	25	(8)
2013–2014	Tampines Rovers	52	(9)
2015	LionsXII	25	(4)
2016	Tampines Rovers	35	(8)
2018	→ Melaka United (loan)	20	(1)
2019	Tampines Rovers	24	(6)
2020–2022	Lion City Sailors	42	(6)
2023–	Hougang United	3	(0)
International career‡
2010–	Singapore	89	(6)
Medal record Men's football Representing   Singapore Sea Games Vientiane 2009 Football Asean Football Championship Winner AFF Suzuki Cup 2012 2012
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 28 July 2018 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 December 2022

Shahdan bin Sulaiman (born 9 May 1988) is a Singaporean professional footballer who plays as a central-midfielder for Singapore Premier League club Hougang United and the Singapore national team. He is known for his free-kick abilities and long-range efforts.

A versatile player, Shahdan is also capable of playing either as a defensive-midfielder, attacking-midfielder and occasionally a centre-back.

Club career

Early career

Shahdan previously played for S.League clubs Home United, Tampines Rovers & Young Lions. He moved to play for the LionsXII in the Malaysia Super League for the 2012 season. ^[2] In 2012, while playing for the LionsXII, Shahdan Sulaiman's impressive form had attracted the attention of the Thai scouts from Pattaya United F.C. who likened him to be a player in the mould of Kaka due to his vision and passing ability. He was briefly considered by the Thai club to join as part of their foreign Asian player scheme, but the move did not happen.

Tampines Rovers

He joined Tampines Rovers in the 2013 season after he was left out of the LionsXII squad as the squad was mostly made up of U-23 players in preparation of the Southeast Asian Games.

In 2013, he signed a 23 months contract with his old club Tampines Rovers. He finished the 2013 season with 4 goals and 9 assists. At the end of 2014, while playing for the national team in the AFF Championship, he picked up an injury which ruled him out for 6 months of the 2015 season. ^[3]

Back to LionsXII

Following his recovery from a long-term injury he picked up at the end of 2014, Shahdan re-joined the LionsXII in 2015. ^{[4] [5]} He made his long awaited comeback in a game against Sime Darby as a late substitute in May 2015. In his next match against ATM FA, he scored with his first touch of the ball and made his first start in July, against Kelantan. ^[6]

Re-signing for the Stags

In January 2016, after the disbandment of LionsXII, he went back to Tampines Rovers FC, although he has had to take a huge pay cut. ^[7] Shahdan played a key role in the team, starting 10 out of 10 league games for the stags before he then missed a huge chunk of the season due to an injury that he picked up in the 90th minute of an AFC Cup tie with Selangor at the Singapore Sports Hub. ^[3] He marked his return in late October, helping his team to a 3-1 win over the Young Lions and eventually secured a place in the national team for the 2016 AFF Championship. ^{[8] [9]}

Shahdan remained with the stags for the 2017 S.League season. ^[10] He had a good season, scoring 6 goals in all competitions, with his performances attracting interest from MSL side Melaka United. ^[11]

Melaka United

Shahdan signed for Malaysia Super League side Melaka United for the 2018 season on a season long loan from the Stags to fill their ASEAN foreign player slot. ^{[12] [13]} On 26 August 2018, in the Malaysia Cup fixture vs PDRM, he scored the 4th goal of the match with a free kick in a 6-1 away victory. ^[14]

Returning to Tampines Rovers

Shahdan returned to the Stags for the 2019 Singapore Premier League season and had a stellar season where he was one of three nominees for the Player of the Year award. ^[15]

Lion City Sailors

Shahdan then signed for the Singapore Premier League's first privatised club, Lion City Sailors for the 2020 Singapore Premier League season. ^[15] On 18 April 2022, He assisted Pedro Henrique goal from a corner with a famous victory over Korean club, Daegu FC in the AFC Champions League. On 29 June 2022, he scored a free kick against Young Lions. On 19 June 2022, Shahdan scored 2 volleys from outside the box against Balestier Khalsa. On 16 July 2022, he found the back of the net with a great effort goal from outside the box against Geylang International. He ended his season with 5 goals and 6 assists.

Hougang United

Shahdan signed for the Cheetahs ahead of the 2023 SPL season but suffered a fractured fibula and dislocation of his left ankle during pre-season which meant that he missed most of the campaign. ^[16] However, he overcame these issues and established himself as a key player for Hougang United in the 2024 Singapore Premier League season with one goal and three assists from 14 appearances. ^[16]

International career

Shahdan got his first goal for the national team in a 2–2 draw with Azerbaijan, scoring a last gasp equaliser to help the Lions come back from behind. ^[17]

8 June 2019, he scored a free kick and got himself an assist in a 4-3 win against Solomon Islands.

In the 2020 AFF Championship 2nd leg semi-finals fixture vs Indonesia, with one swerve of his right foot, Shahdan sent a free-kick to the top left corner of Indonesia’s net, which gave nine-man Singapore a shock 2-1 lead, although the Lions ultimately lost in extra time. ^[16]

As of January 2023 , Shahdan has amassed 85 caps for the senior national team. ^[11]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 24 Oct 2022 ^{[18] [19] [20]}

Club	Season	League			Cup1		League Cup2		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Tampines Rovers	2006	S.League	5	0	—	—	—	—	—	—	5	0
	2007	S.League	21	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	21	2
	2008	S.League	26	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	26	2
	Total		52	4	—	—	—	—	—	—	52	4
Home United	2009	S.League	21	0	—	—	—	—	—	—	21	0
	2010	S.League	16	1	1	0	1	0	—	—	18	1
	Total		37	1	1	0	1	0	—	—	39	1
Tampines Rovers	2010	S.League	7	1	5	2	—	—	—	—	12	3
	2011	S.League	19	7	—	—	—	—	7	1	26	8
	Total		26	8	5	2	—	—	7	1	38	11
Young Lions	2011	S.League	13	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	13	2
	Total		13	2	—	—	—	—	—	—	13	2
LionsXII	2012	Malaysia Super League	25	8	4	0	10	0	—	—	39	8
	Total		25	8	4	0	10	0	—	—	39	8
Tampines Rovers	2013	S.League	25	4	1	0	3	0	5	0	34	4
	2014	S.League	27	5	6	0	1	0	7	0	41	5
	Total		52	9	7	0	4	0	12	0	75	9
LionsXII	2015	Malaysia Super League	0	1	0	0	0	2	—	—	0	0
	Total		0	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	0	0
Tampines Rovers	2016	S.League	13	2	1	0	1	1	6	0	21	3
	2017	S.League	21	5	2	1	0	0	4	0	27	6
	Total		34	7	3	1	1	1	10	0	48	9
Melaka United (loan)	2018	Malaysia Super League	20	0	0	1	0	0	—	—	20	1
	Total		20	0	0	1	0	0	—	—	20	1
Tampines Rovers	2019	S.League	23	6	5	2	0	0	6	0	34	8
	Total		23	6	5	2	0	0	6	0	34	8
Lion City Sailors	2020	Singapore Premier League	13	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	1
	2021	Singapore Premier League	20	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	20	2
	2022	Singapore Premier League	25	5	0	0	1	0	6	0	32	5
	Total		58	8	0	0	1	0	6	0	65	8
Hougang United	2023	Singapore Premier League	3	0	2	0	0	0	4	0	9	0
	2024–25	Singapore Premier League	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		3	0	2	0	0	0	4	0	9	0
Career total			333	50	27	5	16	0	39	1	415	56

¹Includes Singapore Cup and Malaysia FA Cup.
²Includes Malaysia Cup and Singapore League Cup.

International goals

Scores and results list Singapore's goal tally first. ^[21]

No	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	24 Feb 2012	The Sevens Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates	Azerbaijan	2–2	2–2	Friendly
2.	8 June 2012	Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore	Malaysia	2–1	2–2	2012 Causeway Challenge
3.	23 March 2018	National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore	Maldives	2–1	3–2	Friendly
4.	8 June 2019		Solomon Islands	2–2	4–3
5.	11 November 2021	Al Hamriya Sports Club Stadium, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates	Kyrgyzstan	1–2	1–2
6.	25 December 2021	National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore	Indonesia	1–2	4–2	2020 AFF Championship

Honours

Club

Tampines Rovers

• S. League: 2011, 2013
• Singapore Cup: 2019

Lion City Sailors

• Singapore Premier League: 2021
• Singapore Community Shield: 2022

Hougang United

• Singapore Cup Runner-ups (1): 2023

International

• AFF Suzuki Cup: 2012

Individual

• Singapore Premier League Team of the Year: 2019, 2021

Others

Singapore Selection Squad

He was selected as part of the Singapore Selection squad for The Sultan of Selangor's Cup to be held on 24 August 2019.

References

1. "Announcement of squad for AFF Suzuki Cup 2014". Football Association of Singapore. 22 November 2014. Archived from the original on 18 December 2014. Retrieved 22 November 2014.
2. "Football: Can Lions win S$306,000 Malaysia Super League prize money?". RED SPORTS. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
3. hermes (13 May 2016). "Football: Shahdan hurt on same pitch". The Straits Times. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
4. "Everything you need to know about the LionsXII (in 2015)". FourFourTwo. 3 February 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
5. "Singapore's Shahdan eyes AFF redemption". ESPN. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
6. "Shahdan in line for first start as Fandi looks to rotate". FourFourTwo. 4 July 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
7. "Only four LionsXII players still to find contracts". The New Paper. 19 December 2015. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
8. "Shahdan in late bid for Lions' spot". The New Paper. 20 October 2016. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
9. "Singapore 23-man squad profiles for the Suzuki Cup". FourFourTwo. 18 November 2016. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
10. "S.League 2017 Transfer Round-Up". FourFourTwo. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
11. "Tampines Rovers' Shahdan set to sign for Melaka United in transfer twist". FourFourTwo. 25 December 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
12. "Melaka United swoop for Singapore international Shahdan". NST Online. 26 December 2017. Retrieved 26 December 2017.
13. "Melaka United signed Singapore international for ASEAN slot | Goal.com" . Retrieved 26 December 2017.
14. PDRM vs MELAKA : 1 - 6 ( M4 - PIALA MALAYSIA 2018 ) , retrieved 16 April 2023
15. Ganesan, Deepanraj. "Lion City Sailors' star Shahdan Sulaiman eyes a dream voyage". The New Paper.
16. Ganesan, Deepanraj (18 October 2024). "Veteran midfielder Shahdan Sulaiman eyes one last hurrah with Lions". The Straits Times. ISSN   0585-3923 . Retrieved 18 October 2024.
17. "Football: Lions come back to draw 2-2 with Azerbaijan in friendly". RED SPORTS. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
18. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. "Shahdan Sulaiman". National-football-teams.com. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
19. "Singapore - Shahdan Sulaiman - Profile with news, career statistics and history". Soccerway. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
20. "Fixtures and Results | Lions XII Official Web Site". Lionsxii.sg. Archived from the original on 29 July 2018. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
21. "Sulaiman, Shahdan". National Football Teams. Retrieved 8 May 2017.

External links

• Shahdan Sulaiman at National-Football-Teams.com
• Fas.org.sg
• Goal.com