New Stags signing Sahil not registered for S.League pending overseas offers
Tampines Rovers yesterday announced the signing of national striker Sahil Suhaimi to boost their attack.
However, the 25-year-old might not be with the Stags for long.
The New Paper has learnt Sahil has been registered only for Tampines' AFC Cup campaign, which kicks off on Feb 21 against Malaysian side Felda United.
The S.League kicks off five days later, with the Stags taking on Albirex Niigata in the Great Eastern Community Shield match at the National Stadium, but the diminutive forward may not feature as he is not registered for the local domestic league.
Tampines chairman Krishna Ramachandra explained that this was because Sahil is in talks with overseas clubs.
Should he secure a contract abroad, Tampines will release him, as they did when Hafiz Abu Sujad signed for Thai club Big Bang Chula last month. If Sahil fails to earn a move overseas, Ramachandra said his club would register him for the S.League.
Tampines head coach Juergen Raab, who took over the reins from Akbar Nawas in a surprise move two weeks ago, said he is looking forward to try and get the best out of Sahil.
The German, who worked briefly with Sahil in the national Under-23 squad in 2015, told TNP: "Sahil has good skills and technique but, sometimes, he can get too comfortable and become satisfied with a situation.
"He must learn that to realise his potential, he needs to put in hard work every day, even in terms of things like nutrition.
"If he can understand this, he can take his performance to another level."
Sahil, who played for Geylang International last season and scored five S.League goals, was part of the Singapore team that were knocked out of the AFF Suzuki Cup last November, but did not play a minute of the team's campaign.
Get The New Paper on your phone with the free TNP app. Download from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store now