England-born footballer Perry Ng receives S’pore citizenship, in line to play at Asian Cup

SINGAPORE – Liverpool-born Cardiff City defender Perry Ng could line up for the Lions at the Jan 7-Feb 5 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, after he received his Singapore citizenship in September.

The development was announced by Football Association of Singapore (FAS) president Forrest Li at the FAS Annual Congress on Sept 27.

Ng had arrived in Singapore on Sept 21 and it is believed that he is the first foreign-born athlete with third-generation heritage to become a Singaporean.

However, he will not join the national football team in Indonesia for the ongoing FIFA ASEAN Cup as the Lions’ team list is already finalised.

He could, however, be unveiled in the Singapore kit in front of home fans as soon as the following international window when the Lions take on Paraguay and five-time world champions Brazil at the National Stadium on Nov 13 and 17 respectively.

Ng’s grandfather was born in Singapore, but the Republic’s citizenship rules state that qualifying for a passport by descent applies only to individuals with at least one parent born in Singapore or who is a citizen by registration.

As such, his citizenship application was being considered under the Foreign Sports Talent scheme, after he attained permanent residency in March 2025.

The dynamic right-back had long expressed his interest in playing for the Lions and has made frequent visits to Singapore during international breaks to train with the national team and mingle with the national youth players.

His routine in town includes paying respects to his grandfather at a Taoist columbarium in Bedok, savouring local delights and volunteering at various charities. 

When the opportunity arose, he watched Singapore play a friendly at the Jalan Besar Stadium and acted as a tour guide for overseas friends, taking them to savour chee cheong fun (rice noodle roll) and chicken rice.

In June, his links with Singapore grew even deeper after he successfully proposed to his girlfriend Lucy Owen at Sentosa on June 23.

Ng joined the Crewe Alexandra academy at five, rose through the ranks to play six seasons for their senior team in the English third and fourth divisions, and was voted the club’s Player of the Year in 2018-19.

He moved to second-tier side Cardiff City in 2021 and was named their Player of the Year in 2022-23 and 2023-24. At both clubs, he suffered relegation but also helped them gain promotion later on.

Returning to the English Championship this term, Cardiff are currently 21st out of 24 teams with seven points from eight games. 

Although the Bluebirds have had a difficult start to the season, Ng scored a thumping goal in the 2-1 loss to Queens Park Rangers in September.

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David Lee is senior sports correspondent at The Straits Times, focusing on aquatics, badminton, basketball, cue sports, football and table tennis.