His team were crying out for a saviour in Oslo, Norway, on Sunday and Ikhsan Fandi delivered.
With one minute left and the game against Skeid tied at 2-2, five Raufoss IL players surged into the opponents' penalty box when Mikkel Maigaard whipped in a hopeful cross from the right.
Ikhsan was the first to react to meet the cross, improvising with an overhead kick to send the ball into the bottom corner for a dramatic winner and his first competitive goal for Raufoss.
The 20-year-old had replaced Ryan Doghman in the 75th minute when his team were 2-1 down, and made his cameo count.
He told The Straits Times: "I never expected my first competitive goal to come from a bicycle kick. It feels even more amazing when it's the match-winner. I will keep working hard to earn more playing time and try to score more goals."
The 3-2 away win extended Raufoss' unbeaten league run to four games, and propelled the second-tier Norwegian side to fourth place on 13 points after seven games.
They trail Aalesund (16 points), Sandefjord (15) and Start (on goal difference) in the 16-team 1. Division. The top two teams earn automatic promotion while third to sixth enter the play-offs for the last slot.
Raufoss coach Christian Johnsen said: "It was about time, regardless of the result, to let him play. Today, he was really good when he came on. He has speed and physicality, and he is also a nice and humble lad who works hard, so we know he has great potential.
"However, in football, it is all about being in shape, and he's starting to get there now."
While Ikhsan had scored for Raufoss in pre-season friendlies, his acrobatic winner was his first goal in a competitive fixture.
It is the first time in 30 years a Singaporean has scored a senior goal for a professional European football club since V. Sundram Moorthy netted the last of his three goals for Swiss side FC Basel in 1989.
Ikhsan's father, Fandi Ahmad, was the only other Singaporean to accomplish the feat with 11 league goals for Dutch team Groningen from 1983 to 1985.
Remarkably, Ikhsan's goal comes after just 92 minutes of league action. Even though he has played in the last six league matches, they were all substitute appearances.
Fandi told ST: "I'm happy for him. He has been wanting to show what he can do, and he injected life into his team when they were down.
"I told him the coach has faith in him, and that's why he has been getting playing time. He just needs to be confident."
Ikhsan's older brother Irfan, 21, is also flourishing with Thai League 2 side BG Pathum United.
With 31 points from 12 games, Pathum are top of the table and on track for a swift return to the top tier.
And the Singapore international defender has played his part with six clean sheets, three goals and two Man-of-the-Match awards.
Fandi said: "I hope more of our footballers venture overseas and improve from playing in a strong league because that can only be good for the national team."
National Under-22 coach Fandi Ahmad yesterday named Vasileios Zikos Chua, 17, and three other youngsters who made their professional debuts in the Singapore Premier League (SPL) this year in his
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Ikhsan gets off mark in Norway, Football News & Top Stories
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Singapore striker Ikhsan Fandi is hitting a purple patch in Norway as he found the net in his third consecutive match for second-tier club Raufoss in just 11 days. On Wednesday, the 20-year-old gave his team a 33rd-minute lead at third-tier Fram Larvik in a Norwegian Football Cup second-round tie.
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Home Football Ikhsan gets off mark in Norway, Football News & Top Stories. Football; His team were crying out for a saviour in Oslo, Norway, on Sunday and Ikhsan Fandi delivered.
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Ikhsan gets off mark in Norway His team were crying out for a saviour in Oslo, Norway, on Sunday and Ikhsan Fandi delivered. With one minute left and the game against Skeid tied at 2-2, five Raufoss IL players surged into the opponents' penalty box when Mikkel Maigaard whipped in a hopeful cross from the right.
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Ikhsan gets off mark in Norway. Singapore's Ikhsan Fandi celebrating with his Raufoss IL teammates after scoring the winner in the 3-2 win over Skeid on Sunday. PHOTO: INSTAGRAM/ PARFAITBIZOZA.
Ikhsan gets off mark in Norway, Football News & Top Stories
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