Malaysian starlet Safawi Rasid officially unveiled as a Portimonense player.
The 23 years old forward joined from Malaysian powerhouse Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) on a season-long loan with an option to buy at the end of the season and will wear the 29 jersey for his new Portuguese side.
“I will try my best for Portimonense and I can’t wait to be in action for the club. I hope [during my time here], I will give something to the club.” Safawi said in his press conference.
“I want to show what I can do and become like [Bruno] Tabata and Shoya Nakajima,”
An academy graduate of T-Team FC, Safawi’s first big move came when he joined JDT in December of 2016 – winning his first best young player award on his debut season in senior football. With JDT he won 4 consecutive league titles and his second best young player award in 2018.
Safawi has featured in the AFC Champions League and was a key member of Tan Cheng Hoe’s Malaysian squad that reached the final of the 2018 AFF Championship.
Safawi is the second Southeast Asian football to move directly to Portugal after Vietnamese striker Le Cong Vinh joined Leixões SC on a 3-month loan deal in September 2009.
