Introduction
Muhammad Faris bin Ramli (born 24 August 1992) is a Singaporean footballer who currently plays for Singaporean club Hougang United FC and will play with Terengganu FC for next season (2020) in Malaysia Super League. Faris plays primarily as a winger. In 2012, Faris made it to the top 52 of Nike's 'The Chance' competition, a worldwide talent hunt for young players. However, he was not drafted in the selection of the final 16 in Barcelona. Faris played for the Young Lions prior to featuring for LionsXII in the Malaysia Super League. He was a former Loyang Secondary Student.
Club career
Young Lions
Faris began his professional football career with Under-23 side Young Lions in the S.League in 2010.
LionsXII
In December 2012, the FAS announced that Faris was to join the LionsXII for the 2013 Malaysia Super League (MSL). He had his most prolific season yet in 2015, scoring 11 goals in all competitions, 8 in the MSL and 2 in the 2015 Malaysia FA Cup, which was won by the LionsXII, and 1 in the 2015 Malaysia Cup. He had scored the first goal in the 3-1 win over Kelatan that brought the Malaysia FA Cup to Singapore. His 8 goals in the league was good enough to see him finish the season as the LionsXII's top scorer in the MSL.
Home United
In 2016, although courted by high spending Tampines Rovers as well as MSL clubs Pahang and Selangor, Faris signed for Home United for the 2016 S.League campaign after the LionsXII was disbanded following the conclusion of the 2015 MSL season. However, following the heights of 2015, Faris was brought down to earth by a disappointing 2016 as he was constantly plagued by injuries.
Although he was once again wooed by some MSL sides, Faris chose to extend his contract with Home. He started the 2017 season in sensation form, scoring 3 goals in 4 appearances in the league for Home. He also has a further 4 goals in 6 games in the 2017 AFC Cup, helping his team become the first team to qualify for the zonal semi-finals. The 9-3 thrashing of Brunei DPMM has to be his best game of the season as he scored 4 and assisted another 4. He eventually finished as the joint local top-scorer of the league with Shahril Ishak, amassing 11 goals in the league. In total, Faris had a standout 2017, scoring 21 goals and notching 21 assists in all competitions, earning him an S.League Player of the Year nomination.
PKNS
On 5 January 2018, Faris signed a contract with Malaysia Super League club PKNS. He scored his first goal for his new club in a 3–4 defeat to Kedah FA. He had a good first season with PKNS, finishing joint-second top scorer for his team with 6 league goals to his name.
Perlis Northern Lions
After speculations of a move to Perak, in January 2019, Faris signed a contract with newly promoted Malaysia Premier League club Perlis Northern Lions F.C.. He was also linked up again with former PKNS FC teammates Safee Sali as well as Khyril Muhymeen, whom joined the club in December 2018. However, after revelation of Perlis financial difficulties and subsequent exclusion from the Malaysian league, Faris opted to terminate his contract in January 2019.
Hougang United
After Faris terminated his contact with Perlis, he returned to Singapore and sign with Singapore Premier League side Hougang United. On 21 April 2019, He made his debut in the opening match and scored his first goal in penalty against Tampines Rovers in a 5–1 defeat.
Faris was consistent in the year and was the top local-born goal scorer in the 2019 Singapore Premier League season, winning the Player of the Year award.
International career
Faris made his first international debut on 9 September 2014 against Hong Kong. He scored his first international goal against Cambodia on 17 November 2014. By early March 2017, he had garnered 29 caps for Singapore.
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 6 May 2017.
Selangor Selection Squad
As a player of PKNS in the 2018 Malaysia Super League season, Faris was selected as part of the Selangor Selection squad for the 2018 Sultan of Selangor's Cup that was held at the Shah Alam Stadium. He came on as a substitute for his PKNS teammate, Zac Anderson on the 60th minute. Selangor eventually won the match 1-1 (5-3) on penalties after he scored the winning penalty.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 25 Sept 2019. Caps and goals may not be correct.
| Club | Season | S.League | Singapore Cup | SingaporeLeague Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Young Lions | 2010 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 25 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 3 | ||
| 2012 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 2 | ||
| 2014 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 1 | ||
| Total | 51 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 7 | |
| Club | Season | MalaysiaSuper League | MalaysiaFA Cup | Malaysia Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| LionsXII | 2013 | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 27 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 22 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 1 | — | 32 | 6 | ||
| 2015 | 17 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 1 | — | 30 | 11 | ||
| Total | 59 | 13 | 9 | 3 | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 89 | 18 | |
| Club | Season | S.League | Singapore Cup | SingaporeLeague Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| Home United | 2016 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 5 | |
| 2017 | 23 | 11 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 39 | 20 | |
| Total | 38 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 4 | 55 | 25 | |
| Club | Season | MalaysiaSuper League | MalaysiaFA Cup | Malaysia Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| PKNS | 2018 | 21 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | 29 | 9 | |
| Total | 21 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 9 | |
| Club | Season | MalaysiaSuper League | MalaysiaFA Cup | Malaysia Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| Perlis | 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Club | Season | S.League | Singapore Cup | SingaporeLeague Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| Hougang United | 2019 | 24 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 27 | 17 | |
| Total | 24 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 17 | |
| Club | Season | MalaysiaSuper League | MalaysiaFA Cup | Malaysia Cup | Asia | Total | |||||
| Terengganu FA | 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 193 | 58 | 24 | 10 | 29 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 254 | 76 | |
International statistics
International goals
- As of match played 5 September 2019. Singapore score listed first, score column indicates score after each Ramli goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 November 2014 | Yishun Stadium, Yishun, Singapore | 9 |  Cambodia |
2–1 | 4–2 | Friendly |
| 2 | 31 March 2015 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | 14 |  Guam |
1–1 | 2–2 | |
| 3 | 13 October 2015 | National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | 18 | Cambodia |
1–0 | 2–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 3 June 2016 | Thuwunna Stadium, Yangon, Myanmar | 20 |  Myanmar |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 5 | 5 October 2017 | Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar | 34 |  Qatar |
1–2 | 1–3 | |
| 6 | 21 November 2018 | National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | 44 |  Timor-Leste |
5–1 | 6–1 | 2018 AFF Championship |
| 7 | 20 March 2019 | Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Bukit Jalil, Malaysia | 46 |  Malaysia |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2019 Airmarine Cup |
| 8 | 8 June 2019 | National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | 48 |  Solomon Islands |
1–0 | 4–3 | Friendly |
| 9 | 5 September 2019 | 50 |  Yemen |
2–2 | 2–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
U22 International goals
- Scores and results list Singapore's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 12 July 2012 | Kaharudin Stadium, Pekanbaru, Indonesia |  Macau |
3–0 | 3-0 (won) | 2013 AFC U-22 Championship qualification |
| 2. | 17 September 2014 | Hwaseong Stadium, Gyeonggi, South Korea |  Oman |
2–3 | 3-3 (draw) | 2014 Asian Games |
| 3. | 4 June 2015 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Myanmar |
1–1 | 1-2 (lost) | 2015 Southeast Asian Games |
| 4. | 8 June 2015 | Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Cambodia |
2–0 | 3-1 (won) | 2015 Southeast Asian Games |
Honours
Club
LionsXII
- Malaysia Super League: 2013
- FA Cup Malaysia: 2015
Personal
- Singapore Premier League Player of the Year: 2019