Football
Gabriel Tan 2y

Where are they now: The last Singapore side to taste AFF Suzuki Cup glory in 2012

With AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 kicking off on Dec. 5 after a year's delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, hosts Singapore will be looking to become champions of Southeast Asia for a record-equalling fifth occasion.

With four previous titles to their name, the Lions are the tournament's second-most successful side behind only Thailand although it has been almost a decade now since they last tasted success in 2012.

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As a new generation of talent like Ikhsan Fandi, Faris Ramli and Gabriel Quak look to lead Singapore to glory once more, we look back at some of the key members from their last Suzuki Cup-winning side and what they have achieved since.

Izwan Mahbud

With first-choice goalkeeper Hassan Sunny sidelined through injury, Izwan Mahbud -- then only 22 -- was given the responsibility between the posts and duly rose to the occasion despite his tender years.

Izwan, who spent the past season with Hougang United after a stint abroad in Thailand, continues to battle with Hassan for the No. 1 spot as famously produced a starring display for Singapore back in 2015 as they held continental powerhouses Japan to a 0-0 draw away from home in the Asian qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup -- a result which the Lions faithful still refer to as "the miracle of Saitama".

Safuwan Baharudin

Like Izwan, youth was no hurdle for Safuwan Baharudin as he held down one of the starting centre-back berths for Singapore at just the age of 21.

With his dominant aerial ability and reading of the game, Safuwan's prodigious talent saw him spend time in the A-League on loan with Melbourne City, although he has spent the past six seasons in the Malaysia Super League with PDRM, Sri Pahang and current employers Selangor.

Baihakki Khaizan

With 142 caps to his name as a three-time AFF champion, Baihakki Khaizan will go down as one of most-decorated players to have represented Singapore, as well as being the man behind one of the iconic Suzuki Cup final moments with his injury-time goal in the 3-1 first-leg win over Thailand.

After spending time in Malaysia and Thailand after the success of 2012, Baihakki returned to the Singapore Premier League with Tampines Rovers and featured for them in their maiden AFC Champions League campaign earlier this year at the age of 37.

Fahrudin Mustafic

A real success story out of Singapore's naturalisation policy at the turn of the millennium, the Serbian-born Fahrudin Mustafic was a fan favourite with his tough-tackling ways in midfield while also boasting an excellent record from the penalty spot.

Mustafic spent the final eight years of his playing career with Singaporean giants Tampines until his retirement in 2018, and has since remained at the club in a coaching capacity.

Shahril Ishak

Having previously tasted AFF success in 2004 and 2007, Shahril Ishak was a man at the peak of his powers at the 2012 edition, starting with two goals in a memorable 3-0 win against bitter rivals and then-defending champions Malaysia that set the Lions on their way.

Shahril would go on to be named the tournament's Most Valuable Player and captained the now-defunct LionsXII to Malaysia Super League victory the following year, although he has not been involved in the Singapore setup since winning his 143rd cap in 2018 -- a mark better only by another three-time Suzuki Cup winner in Daniel Bennett.

Khairul Amri

While Singapore have long been plagued by a strange inability to produce top-level strikers, which led to many foreign attackers being naturalised especially in the early 2000s, Khairul Amri was a once-in-a-generation talent that bucked the trend.

Boasting a genuine X factor, Amri was the type of player capable of winning a match on his own and spent the past season with Tanjong Pagar United in the Singapore Premier League. One only wonders how many additional caps he would have added to the 132 he won, had he not been hampered at times throughout his career by serious injuries.

Aleksandar Duric

When Aleksandar Duric received Singapore citizenship at the age of 37 in 2007, the cynics would have been wondering what he would really be offering the Lions given he seemed to be at the tail end of a well-travelled career. But through his professionalism and care for his body, Duric -- who remarkably competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics for Bosnia-Herzegovina in canoeing -- would play on for seven more seasons.

By the time he hung up his boots, Duric had played a key role in Singapore's 2012 triumph as a 42-year-old while also remaining the only man in Singapore Premier League history to pass the 300-goal mark, and is still based in his adopted nation where he is involved in coaching at youth level.

Radojko Avramovic

The appointment of Radojko Avramovic as coach coincided with one of Singapore's most-successful eras as they won three AFF titles under his stewardship, before eventually parting ways with the Serb in 2014.

Avramovic would make another appearance at the Suzuki Cup in 2014 when he was in charge of Myanmar and even came up against his former charges, and then returned to Singapore in 2019 to take charge of Singapore Premier League outfit Home United (now Lion City Sailors) -- although that foray ended abruptly when he was diagnosed with cancer and returned to Serbia for treatment.

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