Muhammad Safawi bin Rasid (born 5 March 1997) is a Malaysian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a winger or

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for

Malaysia Super League The Malaysia Super League (), known simply as the Super League (), is the men's top professional Football in Malaysia, football division of the Malaysian football league system. Administered by the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnersh ...

club Kuala Lumpur City and the Malaysia national team.

Early life

Safawi lives in Kampung Bukit Chatak,

Dungun Dungun (Terengganu Malay: ''Dungung'') is a coastal district of the Malaysian state of Terengganu. Kuala Dungun is the capital of the district. Dungun is made up of eleven 'mukim', or subdistricts: Abang, Besol, Jengai, Jerangau, Kuala Dungun, Ku ...

and attended school at Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seri Dungun, Dungun, Terengganu in 2010 before moving to Sekolah Sukan Bukit Nenas, Setiu, Terengganu to improve his football talent until 2014. He had played football for his school team since his first year of being a secondary school student. Safawi has 13 siblings and most of them are involved with sports such as sepak takraw, football, and hockey. His two younger brother Syakir played for Terengganu III, and Alfi played for

Kedah Kedah (), also known by its honorific Darul Aman (Islam), Aman (دار الأمان; Arabic for 'The Safe Abode') and historically as Queda, is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of ...

. He is the ninth sibling and the pride of the Dungun people.

Club career

Youth career

By 2011, T-Team had established a football academy all over six

Terengganu Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay: ''Tranung'', formerly spelled Trengganu or Tringganu) is a sultanate and States and federal territories of Malaysia, federal state of Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, ''Dāru l-Iman (c ...

cities,

, Marang,

Besut Besut ( Terengganuan and Kelantanese: ''Besuk'') is a Terengganu Malay and Kelantan Malay district in the Terengganu federal state of Malaysia. It is bordered by the state of Kelantan to the north and west and the South China Sea to the east. It ...

Kemaman Kemaman (Terengganu Malay: ''Kemamang'' or ''Mamang'') is a district in Terengganu, Malaysia. Kemaman District is bordered by Dungun District to the north and the state of Pahang to the south and west. It is the southern gateway to the state of Te ...

Setiu Setiu is one of the districts in Terengganu, Malaysia. This district is bordered by Besut to the north, Hulu Terengganu to the south, and on the east, Kuala Nerus District. Setiu is the second youngest and least populated district in Terengganu. ...

and

Kuala Terengganu Kuala Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay language, Terengganu Malay: ''Kole Tranung''), colloquially referred to as KT, is the administrative, economic and royal List of capitals in Malaysia, city of the state of Terengganu, Malaysia. Kuala Tereng ...

by their 2011 head coach, Jibang Marzuki. All the football academy players must be below 18 years old and Jibang Marzuki managed to hold a game for each team every week to ensure the best performance before going to T-Team Football Club pre-selection at the end of the year. Safawi Rasid, who was only 15 years old when he joined the Dungun T-Team Football Club Academy, always made the first-eleven for his team on each game. He used to play as a

central midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

and loved scoring long-range shots with his left foot. His manager at the time, recalls going to his house and forcing him to attend training as he believed that Safawi had a bright future ahead. Since then, Safawi represented Terengganu's football team each year for the MSSM tournament. When he was 16 years old, he moved to Sekolah Sukan Bukit Nenas to improve his football skills, 66 kilometres away from home. Due to his fantastic talent at the Sports School League, T-Team coach, Rahmad Darmawan selected him to attend training with the first team. Safawi quickly impressed Rahmad and soon became an integral part of the first team.

T-Team

At the age of 17, Safawi made his professional debut in the 2014 Malaysia Cup against Selangor on 13 August 2014.

Johor Darul Ta'zim

In December 2016, it was announced that Safawi had agreed to sign with champions

Johor Darul Ta'zim Johor, also spelled Johore,'' is a state of Malaysia in the south of the Malay Peninsula. It borders with Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the north. Johor has maritime borders with Singapore to the south and Indonesia to the east and w ...

. He was assigned the number 29.

2017 season

On 7 February 2017, Safawi featured in the 2017 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs against

Gamba Osaka is a Japanese professional association football, football club based in Suita, Osaka Prefecture. The club plays in the J1 League, which is the top tier of football in the country. The club's home stadium is Panasonic Stadium Suita. They form a ...

which his side lost 0–3. On 27 January 2017, Safawi made his league debut in a 3–1 win over

Felda United Felda United Football Club was a Malaysian football club based in Jengka, Pahang, owned by the Malaysian Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA).

after coming off from the bench. On 15 July 2017, he scored his first goal in the

Malaysian Super League The Malaysia Super League (), known simply as the Super League (), is the men's top professional football division of the Malaysian football league system. Administered by the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLLP), now known ...

for his new club in a 3–1 victory against

Sarawak Sarawak ( , ) is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state of Malaysia. It is the largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is ...

. At the end of the season, Safawi picked up his first

and

2017 Malaysia Cup The 2017 Malaysia Cup ( Malay: ''Piala Malaysia 2017'') was the 91st edition of the Malaysia Cup tournament organised by Football Association of Malaysia. The 2017 Malaysia Cup began on August with a preliminary round. A total of 16 teams took pa ...

medal, helping Johor Darul Ta'zim win their 4th consecutive league title and first

Malaysia Cup The Malaysia Cup (), formerly known as Malaya Cup, is an annual football tournament in Malaysia, held at the end of the calendar year. The cup was first held in 1921. Despite its prestige and popularity as the country's oldest cup tournament, i ...

in their history.

2018 season

During the 2018 AFC Cup group stage, Safawi showed an impressive performance in a 3–0 victory over

Persija Jakarta Persatuan Sepakbola Indonesia Jakarta ( 'Indonesian Football Association of Jakarta'), abbreviated as Persija (), is an Indonesian professional Association football, football club based in the Indonesian capital city of Jakarta. Persija Jaka ...

, scoring a stunner along the way. On 17 March, he scored his first hat-trick in a 2–3 victory in the third round of the 2018 Malaysia FA Cup against

UiTM The MARA Technological University ( Malay: ''Universiti Teknologi MARA''; Jawi: اونيۏرسيتي تيكنولوڬي مارا; abbr. UiTM) is a public university in Malaysia, based primarily in Shah Alam, Selangor. It was established to hel ...

. On 14 April 2018, he scored his first goal of the Malaysian Super League season against PKNS.

2019 season

During the

2019 AFC Champions League The 2019 AFC Champions League was the 38th edition of Asia's premier club football tournament, organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and the 17th under the current AFC Champions League title. Al-Hilal defeated Urawa Red Diamo ...

group stages Safawi scored a curler goal against Chinese club

Shandong Luneng Shandong Taishan Football Club () is a Chinese professional football club based in Jinan, Shandong, that competes in . Shandong Taishan plays its home matches at the Jinan Olympic Sports Center Stadium, located within Lixia District. Their c ...

that made him win the AFC 'Goal of the Decade'.

Loan to Portimonense

Safawi joined Portuguese

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga ...

club

Portimonense Portimonense Sporting Clube is a Portuguese sports club based in Portimão. Founded on 14 August 1914, it is most notable for its professional football team, which currently plays in the Liga Portugal 2, the second division of Portuguese football ...

from

on a season long loan. He made his debut for the U-23 side on 16 October 2020, which ended in a 3–1 loss against

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

U-23. The loan was cut short at the end of December 2020 because of lack of playing time given by the coach, making Safawi leave without any first team appearances.

2021 season

During the opening match of Malaysia Super League against

Piala Sumbangsih The Malaysian Charity Shield (English: Charity Cup), also known as Piala Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah () or Piala Sumbangsih, is a Malaysian football super cup competition. It is the curtain raiser match to the new Malaysian football season, pittin ...

, he scored his goal for the club after return from loan spell in Portugal. However, in the next match Safawi injured his knee, making him out for three months.

Loan to Ratchaburi

On 4 December 2022,

Ratchaburi Ratchaburi (, ) or Rajburi, Rat Buri) is a town ('' thesaban mueang'') in western Thailand, capital of Ratchaburi Province. Ratchaburi town covers the entire ''tambon'' Na Mueang (หน้าเมือง) of Mueang Ratchaburi District. As o ...

chairman Tanawat Nitikanchana has announced that the club have signed Safawi during the

2022–23 Thai League 1 The 2022–23 Thai League 1 is the 26th season of the Thai League 1, the top Thai professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1996, also known as Hilux Revo Thai League due to the sponsorship deal with Toyota ...

transfer window. He made his debut for the team on 21 January 2023, which ended in a 2–0 lost against Khon Kaen United. On 19 March, in his 9th appearance in the league, Safawi nets his first goal in the

Thai League 1 The Thai League (, pronounced as ') or Thai League 1 (, pronounced as '), often referred to as T1, is the highest level of the Thai football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with Thai L ...

during the 2–1 win against

Chonburi Chonburi (, , IAST: , ) is the capital of Chonburi Province and, as part of the district Mueang Chonburi District, Mueang Chonburi, the List of municipalities in Thailand, seventh-largest city in Thailand. It is about 100 km southeast of Ba ...

Loan to Terengganu

On 12 February 2024, It was announced that Safawi had agreed to signed with

International career

Junior

Safawi made his debut for the Malaysia under-22 team in the

2016 Nations Cup The 2016 Nations Cup was the inaugural edition of the Nations Cup hosted in Malacca City, Malaysia from 3 to 5 June 2016. It was organised by MP & Silva with the under-21 teams of Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand Thailand, officially t ...

Senior

In August 2016, Safawi was called up to the Malaysian national team for the match against

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

. He made his debut for the senior team in the match as a starter, as Malaysia lost 0–3. He was then called up again for the 2016 Causeway Challenge against rivals,

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, which ended 0–0. Before the start of the 2016 AFF Suzuki Cup, Safawi was omitted from the final 23-man squad. The omission of Safawi from

Ong Kim Swee Datuk Ong Kim Swee () DPSM is a Malaysian football manager and former footballer, who is currently the head coach of Liga 1 club Persik Kediri. He spent most of his career playing for East Malaysian teams, notably Sarawak and Sabah during t ...

was heavily criticized by Malaysian football fans despite veteran striker,

Safee Sali Mohd Safee bin Mohd Sali (born 29 January 1984) is a former Malaysian footballer who played as forward. He played for Kuala Lumpur FA, Telekom Melaka, Sarawak, Selangor, Johor Darul Ta'zim, PKNS, Perlis and Petaling Jaya City before return ...

managing to be in the squad despite having a poor season earlier with

. During the

2017 Southeast Asian games The 2017 Southeast Asian Games (), officially known as the 29th Southeast Asian Games, or the 29th SEA Games, and commonly known as Kuala Lumpur 2017, were a Southeast Asian multi-sport event that took place from 19 to 30 August 2017 in Kuala ...

, Safawi was selected for the 20-man squad by

. He scored the first goal of the tournament with a stunning volley from a cross by his fellow countryman Matthew Davies in a 2–1 victory against

Brunei Brunei, officially Brunei Darussalam, is a country in Southeast Asia, situated on the northern coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Malaysian state of Sarawak, with ...

. Safawi scored his second goal of the tournament during the 3–1 victory against

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

. Despite receiving the silver medal after losing 1–0 during the final against

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, Safawi was one of the best players of the tournament and showed consistent performances throughout the tournament. On 10 November 2017 Safawi scored his first international goal in the

2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification The 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification was the qualification process organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) to determine the participating teams for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, the 17th edition of the international men's football champions ...

against

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. During the

2018 Asian Games The 2018 Asian Games ( or ''Asian Games 2018''), officially known as the 18th Asian Games (), and also known as Jakarta-Palembang 2018 or Indonesia 2018, were a Asia, continental multi-sport event that was held from 18 August to 2 September 201 ...

in Jakarta-Palembang, Indonesia. Safawi was also selected for the 20-man squad by Ong Kim Swee. On 17 August, when Malaysia was playing against

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, he scored twice to secure a 2–1 win in their second group match. In November 2018, Safawi was called up to the

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

national squad for the

2018 AFF Championship The 2018 AFF Championship was the 12th edition of the AFF Championship, the Association football, football championship of nations affiliated to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF), and the 6th under the name AFF Suzuki Cup. This was the first t ...

. Safawi scored one goal in the tournament, against

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

in the final first leg. On 9 December 2021, he scored his first international hat-trick in a 4–0 win over

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

in the 2020 AFF Suzuki Cup group stage at the

Bishan Stadium Bishan Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Bishan, Singapore, Bishan, Singapore. It is the main home ground of Singapore Premier League side Lion City Sailors FC, Lion City Sailors, and used mostly for Football (soccer), football matches. The s ...

. Safawi is also part of the Malaysian team that qualified for the

2023 AFC Asian Cup The 2023 AFC Asian Cup was the 18th edition of the AFC Asian Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). It involved 24 national teams after its expansion in 20 ...

. He played all 3 matches against

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

and

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

in Third Round Group E Qualification, scoring a goal against Turkmenistan and Bangladesh. On 15 January 2024, Safawi came on as a substitution during the

match against

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Malaysia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Safawi Rasid goal.''

Honours

Club

Johor Darul Ta'zim

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

, runner-up:

Malaysia FA Cup The Malaysia FA Cup () is an annual association football, football competition in Malaysia, established in 1990. It was previously managed by the Football Association of Malaysia, before being transferred to the Football Malaysia LLP, Malaysian ...

International

Malaysia U-23 *

SEA Games The Southeast Asian Games, commonly known as SEA Games is a biennial multi-sport event involving participants from the current 11 countries of Southeast Asia. The games are under the regulation of the Southeast Asian Games Federation with su ...

: Silver

Malaysia *

AFF Championship The ASEAN Championship (formerly known as the AFF Championship or AFF Cup), currently known as the ASEAN Hyundai Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the biennial football tournament organized by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) for men's natio ...

runner-up:

King's Cup King's Cup (incl. translations), may refer to: Sports Football * Copa del Rey, Spanish for "King's Cup," the main national knockout tournament in men's football * King's Cup (Bahrain), the premier national knockout football tournament * King's ...

runner-up:

Pestabola Merdeka Merdeka Tournament () is an international friendly football tournament held in Malaysia to commemorate the Independence Day. It is mainly played at Independence Stadium, in Kuala Lumpur. "Merdeka" is the Malay word for independence. As of 202 ...

: 2024; runner-up 2023

Individual

Top Scorer:

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League Elite (abbreviated as the ACL Elite) is an annual continental club association football, football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's List of top-division football clubs i ...

Goal Of The Decade: 2020 * Malaysia Cup Top Scorer:

(11 goals) * Malaysia Cup Best Player:

FourFourTwo ''FourFourTwo'' is an association football magazine published by British company Future. Issued monthly, it published its 300th edition in May 2019. It takes its name from the football formation of the same name, 4–4–2. Future acquired the ...

ASEAN The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, commonly abbreviated as ASEAN, is a regional grouping of 10 states in Southeast Asia "that aims to promote economic and security cooperation among its ten members." Together, its member states r ...

– Young Player of the Year: 2018 * FAM Football Awards – Most Promising Player: 2016, 2018 * FAM Football Awards – Best Eleven: 2018, 2019 * FAM Football Awards – Best Midfielder: 2018 * FAM Football Awards – Best Striker: 2019 * FAM Football Awards – Most Popular Player: 2019 * FAM Football Awards – Most Valuable Player: 2018, 2019 * Malaysia Super League Team of the Season:

: Best Eleven *

Thai League The Thai League (, pronounced as ') or Thai League 1 (, pronounced as '), often referred to as T1, is the highest level of the Thai football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with Thai L ...

Dream ASEAN XI *

ASEAN Club Championship The ASEAN Club Championship or ACC, also known as the Shopee Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an international club football competition organised by the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) between domestic champion clubs. The competition is backed by ...

: Allstar XI 2024–25

References

External links

Safawi Rasid website
* {{AFF Cup top scorers 1997 births Living people Malaysian men's footballers Malaysia men's international footballers Terengganu F.C. II players Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C. players Terengganu FC players Kuching City F.C. players Portimonense S.C. players Malaysia Super League players 21st-century Malaysian sportsmen Malaysian people of Malay descent Thai League 1 players Ratchaburi F.C. players Footballers from Terengganu Men's association football wingers SEA Games silver medalists for Malaysia SEA Games medalists in football Footballers at the 2018 Asian Games Competitors at the 2017 SEA Games Asian Games footballers for Malaysia Malaysian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal Malaysian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Expatriate men's footballers in Thailand Malaysian expatriate sportspeople in Thailand Malaysia men's youth international footballers 2023 AFC Asian Cup players