SINGAPORE – With his famous last name, one would expect doors to open everywhere for Iryan Fandi.

His father, local football icon Fandi Ahmad, and family are practically football royalty here, and elder brothers Irfan, Ikhsan and Ilhan – who are 25, 23 and 20 – play professionally and have donned national colours.

But 16-year-old Iryan, the youngest of Fandi’s brood of five, has not only experienced rejection in the sport once, but twice.

Now, the former rugby player is ready to step out of his family’s huge shadow to make his mark as a professional footballer.

In an interview with The Straits Times, the soft-spoken teenager talked about his early struggles. He experienced his first setback at Anglo-Chinese School (Junior), when he was cut from the school team.

He said: “I have wanted to play football ever since I was four, when I would attend academies and train with my dad. So, naturally, I took up football in school but the teacher in charge kicked me out because I missed too many training sessions because I was ill.”

His chronic asthma led to fainting spells while playing football, leading to frequent trips to the hospital. His condition is now under control as he is able to complete 90 minutes in matches although he uses an inhaler pump before warm-up.

After that first rejection, he opted to play rugby instead and competed for ACS (Barker Road) up to when he was in Secondary 3.

He had tried for the football team in secondary school but was once again turned away owing to a lack of technique.

But the third time was the charm for Iryan, who made gym workouts his priority as he worked on his technique. He became leaner, fitter and taller – he is 1.76m – and, in Secondary 3, tried out for the school team and was accepted.

Iryan also joined the Lion City Sailors’ Under-16 team before making a move to Hougang United at the start of 2022. He was a star performer for the developmental Cheetahs side in the recently concluded Football Association of Singapore’s Centre of Excellence Under-17 league, where he started in all 14 matches as Hougang finished second in the eight-team league. 

Robert Eziakor, head coach of the Hougang Under-17 squad, was full of praise for his centre-back, who has contributed to the team’s six clean sheets this season and has even scored twice.

He said: “He is a very physical and committed player... In particular, he has speed and robustness.”

Iryan wants to make up for lost time and join his band of brothers in making their mark overseas.

Irfan and Ikhsan are with Thai giants BG Pathum United while Ilhan recently earned a move to Belgian second-tier side KMSK Deinze.

Iryan, the only left-footed footballer in his family, said: “I look up to them a lot and I cannot ask for better role models to learn from. I always read about them in the media and seeing them do well enough in their careers to get overseas moves makes me really hungry to follow in their footsteps.

“Not many players can say they have the chance to play professional football in Norway, Thailand or Belgium. I want to be the next. I dream about that all the time.”

Comparing Iryan to current Lions captain Hariss Harun, Eziakor said: “In this region, physicality is lacking. When you see a player who has it, they are on their way. And it is hard to find left-footed centrebacks. He just needs to keep playing matches.”

Fandi said what sets Iryan apart from his brothers is his fearlessness. The technical adviser for Malaysian Super League outfit Sri Pahang said: “He is not afraid to get stuck in. He is brave enough to fly into tackles and win headers. He has a long way to go and he is behind the others in terms of experience because he is starting out later. I have told him to be patient and keep working hard.”

With Iryan having completed his N levels in 2022, Fandi said the plan is for him to enlist for national service early, as was the case for his older sons. Not one to get emotional, Fandi said the prospect of one day seeing all his sons don the national kit is the ultimate dream.

In the FAS Tri-Nations Series on March 26, Ikhsan, Irfan and Ilhan took to the pitch for the Lions in their 2-1 win over Malaysia.

“It will be amazing. It might even want me to get my kit on and join them,” said Fandi. “It is rare that four brothers can be on the same team. But all I want is for them to work hard, stay humble, enjoy themselves and make the nation proud. Iryan has time on his side.”