Player Type: DEFENDERS
Nationality: Portuguese
DOB/Age: 27 July 2003 (22)
Previous Clubs: F.C. Famalicão (2021-2025)
A modern-day full-back with lightning speed, aggression, and impressive dead-ball abilities, Diogo is a key addition for the Sailors as he joins on loan for the second half of the 2024/25 season.
Diogo progressed through the ranks to represent his boyhood club Famalicão in the Under-15, Under-17, Under-19, and Under-23 national competitions, captaining nearly every age group he has played in.
Filling one of the three permitted Under-21 foreign players’ slots in the Sailors’ SPL squad, Diogo is hungry to showcase his abilities and potential in the Lion City.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 21 November 2000 (25)
Previous Clubs: Young Lions (2019-2020), Tanjong Pagar United (2022-2025)
Athletic, strong in the tackle, and versatile across multiple positions, Akram provides depth for the Sailors in the defensive department going into the second half of the 2024/25 season.
Akram has come a long way since making his professional debut for Young Lion in 2019, with a key part of his development coming at Tanjong Pagar where he demonstrated remarkable maturity as club captain to lead both younger teammates and seasoned players with confidence.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 29 January 2009 (15)
Previous Club: Tanjong Pagar United
Despite picking up football by chance when she was younger, Seri has developed into a fine full-back. Her tenacity and aggression have made her an important part of the Sailors Women’s team.
A player who enjoys and often wins her one-on-one duels, Seri’s impressive displays at club level have earned her call-ups to the national youth set-up with the U15 NDC Girls and the National U19 Women’s Team.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 19 April 2009 (15)
Previous Club: Mattar Sailors
Coming through the Sailors’ Girls Academy youth pipeline since she was ten, Tyan played a vital role in the Mattar Sailors’ 2023 WNL run, where they finished as first runners-up. She has since been promoted to the WPL team in 2024.
Despite her youth, Tyan has established herself as an integral presence in the Sailors’ backline, and is known for her speed and aggression. She looks up to the senior centre-backs in the team, Sara and Umairah, and hopes to learn as much from them as possible.
Nationality: Croatian
DOB/Age: 6 November 1993 (32)
Previous Clubs: SD Huesca (2019-2020 – loan), Aris Thessaloniki (2020-21), FC Cartagena (2021 – loan, 2022-23), Real Salt Lake (2021), Albacete Balompié (2023-2024)
The nickname El Sicario – a Spanish term that translates to “The Hitman” in English – says it all about Toni, who takes no prisoners with his no-holds barred playing style at the heart of defence.
He brings significant experience from the Spanish second-tier, having amassed a century of appearances in LaLiga 2. The majority of these came in FC Cartagena colours, while he was also part of SD Huesca’s 2019/20 title-winning side that earned promotion to LaLiga the following season.
In a storied playing career to date, Datković has also played in top-tier competitions such as USA’s Major League Soccer with Real Salt Lake and the UEFA Europa League with Greek club Aris Thessaloniki, in addition to being capped once at the international level with Croatia.
Strong in the air and equally comfortable playing the ball out of defence, Toni is a key presence in the Sailors backline that already boasts former Australia World Cup player Bailey Wright, as well as Singapore internationals such as Hariss Harun and Lionel Tan.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 31 July 2007 (17)
Previous Club: Mattar Sailors
Tia started playing football when she was in primary Three and fell in love with the Beautiful Game, hooked on the thrills of defending against opposition forwards. She is the second of three sisters who are all part of Lion City Sailors Girls’ Academy.
Mainly deployed as a right-back, Tia is blessed with skill, pace and is aggressive when it comes to defending 1v1 situations and committing to challenges.
Inspired by French footballer Sakina Karchoui, Tia wants to improve her game and play at a higher level in the future.
Nationality: Australian
DOB/Age: 28 July 1992 (33)
Previous Clubs: Preston North End (2010-2017), Bristol City (2017-2020), Sunderland (2020 – loan, 2020-2023), Rotherham United (2023 – loan)
Bailey is an Australian international, who was a part of Australia’s 2022 FIFA World Cup campaign in Qatar that saw the Socceroos qualify from a group that featured France, Denmark and Tunisia, before falling to Lionel Messi’s Argentina, the eventual tournament winners, in the Round of 16.
An old-school robust centre-back who wears on his heart on his sleeve, he is undoubtedly one of the leading figures of the team and is a perfect role model for the younger players in the squad.
Bailey joined the Sailors in the SPL mid-season transfer window after departing Sunderland, where he was a cult hero of the Black Cats’ faithful during his three-and-a-half years on Wearside. Those years saw Sunderland enjoy much success, winning their first trophy since 1973 as they lifted the 2020/21 Papa John’s Trophy (EFL) at Wembley, before earning promotion into the English second-tier – the Sky Bet Championship – in 2022.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 28 November 1992 (33)
Previous Clubs: Tampines Rovers (2014, 2016, 2022), LionsXII (2015), Young Lions (2016), Home United (2017-2018), Geylang International (2019-2021)
Comfortable with either foot and on either flank, Chris’ versatility makes him a quality acquisition for the Sailors ahead of the 2023 campaign. The self-professed late bloomer has come a long way since making his name in local football reality TV series, FirstXI, in 2014.
He flourished for LionsXII in the 2015 Malaysia Super League, grew into a dependable first-team player over the years for various clubs, before a standout 2022 campaign for Tampines saw him become one of the first names on the team sheet for the Singapore National Team. Chris is undoubtedly at the peak of his powers now, as he lines up for the Sailors’ charge for a first Singapore Premier League title since 2021.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 29 March 1998 (27)
Previous Clubs: Young Lions (2016-2019, 2021-2022)
A modern-day full-back who is aggressive in the tackle and excels in making forward runs to support the attack, Zulqarnaen is an asset at both ends of the pitch. Part of the Sailors’ squad in the club’s inaugural season in 2020, he returned to play for Young Lions for one and a half seasons where he furthered his development and is now a Singapore national team regular.
Having particular sparkled towards the end of 2023 with strong performances in the Tiger Cup against English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur and in the AFC Champions League, he was unfortunate to suffer an anterior cruciate ligament injury earlier this year and is currently on the road to recovery.
Nationality: Singaporean
DOB/Age: 21 February 2003 (21)
Previous Clubs: South Avenue SC
Playing at the void deck with her brothers at the age of nine sparked Khairunnisa’s love for football, and she went on to represent Singapore at various age-group levels, and eventually earned a call up to the senior National Team.
She may be tiny in size, but she more than makes it up with her heart and grit on the pitch. An adept reader of the game, she executes her tackles both aggressively and effectively on the right side of defence.
As someone who juggles her school commitments and part-time work with football, Nisa is hoping that her sacrifices and perseverance pay off as she continues to cement herself as a first-team regular for club and country.
