Tanjong Pagar United’s Emilio Estevez Tsai moved for love but wants to stay for the football

SINGAPORE – Having plied his trade in North America, Europe and Asia, Canada-born Taiwanese Emilio Estevez Tsai was looking for a fresh start when he arrived in Singapore in July 2025 to play for Tanjong Pagar United in the Singapore Premier League (SPL).

His foray in local football was hit by a setback immediately, when the 27-year-old midfielder tore the medial collateral ligament (MCL) in his right knee in a pre-season friendly, putting him out of action for over a month.

He returned in late October but did not get a full game till the end of January, and he scored his first goal in a 2-1 loss to BG Tampines Rovers on Jan 31.

Estevez said: “It was difficult during this period of time, because I’ve never really gotten an injury this serious before. I had to do all the procedures and all the recovery to get back to fitness, so it’s quite complicated, because I didn’t play at all.”

It was love that first brought Estevez to Singapore, having met his Singaporean girlfriend while she was on holiday in Spain – they have been in a long-distance relationship for four years.

He said: “Previously, I was (playing in) Hong Kong, and I was always interested to see if I could get an opportunity to play in the Singaporean league and I got the chance to join Tanjong Pagar (through an agent).

“I really like it here, so if it’s up to me, I don’t mind playing here for quite some time, but at the end of the day, I just want to keep performing.”

Estevez was born and raised in Canada by his Spanish father and Taiwanese mother – his dad introduced him to futsal first.

Despite sharing a name with the Hollywood actor who starred in The Mighty Ducks movies, Estevez was actually named after Real Madrid and Spain legend Emilio Butragueno.

At 20, he signed his first professional contract with North Mississauga SC in Ontario, and several moves later, he secured a move to the Eredivisie – the top division in the Netherlands – with ADO Den Haag, where current Lion City Sailors coach Aleksandar Rankovic was coincidentally in charge.

He was called up to the Chinese Taipei national team in 2019, and made his debut against Australia in a World Cup qualifier.

Further moves saw him playing in Hong Kong and Taiwan, before joining the Jaguars in Singapore.

He said: “I’m 27 right now and you don’t realise it, but you learn so much from everywhere you go. It sounds cliche, but when I was 20 or 21, I thought I knew everything.

“But when I went to the Netherlands, it was actually a huge reality check for me, 21 years old over there, I was learning how to ping a ball properly.

“And then that’s when you realise, you need to be on top of your game every single day if you really want to make this your career for the long term... It really shaped me and my mentality changed.”

Jaguars coach Noh Alam Shah said: “Having played in those leagues overseas, I’m sure he will have a good grasp of what the club wants him to do tactically and can adapt well to how Tanjong Pagar want to play football.

“I’m hoping that he can share all the positives he has experienced from before he came to Singapore, so the local boys can learn a thing or two from him.”

Asked about the difference between the SPL and leagues that he has played in, Estevez said: “(The league here) is quite similar to the Hong Kong league, but I think now it’s a bit more competitive because you could have seven foreigners playing at a time.

“The football in Canada was quite physical, but anywhere you go, a player will always take some time to adapt.”

Having scored his first goal for the Jaguars, Estevez wants to help his club win more points – they are currently seventh in the eight-team SPL on four points, with one win and a draw.

Tanjong Pagar will play fourth-placed Geylang International on Feb 6 at the Jurong East Stadium.

Said Eagles coach Noor Ali: “I’m looking at the positives of the last three games (which were all losses) and in terms of performance, I can’t fault the players... But we need to score goals to win games and that’s a concern for us now. We are definitely looking to bounce back stronger.

“Tanjong Pagar have a playing style that we have to manage and it’s not easy playing Alam Shah’s side that works very hard throughout the 90 minutes.”

Balestier Khalsa v BG Tampines Rovers (Feb 7, 7.30pm, Bishan Stadium)

Off the back of three losses in the SPL, Balestier will face second-placed Tampines, who are still unbeaten in the league. The Stags will be looking to bounce back from a humiliating 6-1 loss away to Cong An Ha Noi in the Asean Club Championship on Feb 4.

Young Lions v Lion City Sailors (Feb 8, 7.30pm, Jalan Besar Stadium)

In the clash between the SPL’s top and bottom sides, the Young Lions, who have yet to register a win this season, will face the high-flying Sailors, who have a 100 per cent record after eight games. The Cubs have a mammoth task in defence if they want to avoid a hammering.

Albirex Niigata v Hougang United (Feb 9, 7.30pm, Jurong East Stadium)

Sitting comfortably in third, just a point off Tampines, the White Swans (16 points) – who have won their last three league games – will be looking to close the gap at the top of the table as they take on the fifth-placed Cheetahs.