Christopher van Huizen

Christopher James van Huizen (born 28 November 1992), commonly known as Chris van Huizen, is a Singaporean professional footballer who plays as a wing-back or winger for Singapore Premier League club Lion City Sailors and the Singapore national team.

In this article, the surname is van Huizen, not Huizen.
Christopher van Huizen
Van Huizen with Lion City Sailors in 2023
Personal information
Full name Christopher James van Huizen
Date of birth (1992-11-28) 28 November 1992
Place of birth Singapore
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Full-back / Winger
Team information
Current team
 Lion City Sailors
Number 22
Youth career
–2010 Geylang United
2010–2013 Tampines Rovers
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014 Tampines Rovers 4 (1)
2015 LionsXII 18 (3)
2016 Tampines Rovers 10 (1)
2016 Young Lions 6 (0)
2017–2018 Home United 21 (0)
2019–2021 Geylang International 53 (4)
2022 Tampines Rovers 11 (3)
2023– Lion City Sailors 17 (1)
International career‡
2014 Singapore U21
2015– Singapore 16 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 05:24, 24 December 2022 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20:34, 24 December 2022 (UTC)

Club career

Youth career

Van Huizen went for trials with Geylang United when he was young and duly impressed the coaches at Geylang was rewarded with a place at the Geylang U-16 squad. He was due to play for S.League giants Tampines Rovers' Prime League squad when he turned 17 but saw his opportunity derailed by National Service in 2011. Van Huizen rejected the chance to play for the SAFSA team during his 2 years of service and almost gave up on continuing professional football.[1]

A second chance came calling for Van Huizen when he entered the professional football scene in Singapore through his involvement in a MediaCorp Channel 5 TV series, First XI.[2][3][4]

Tampines Rovers

Following his performance in the reality TV series, Tampines Rovers coach Rafi Ali offered Van Huizen a two-year contract to play for both the Prime League and the S.League teams in 2013.[5]

LionsXII

Alongside Sahil Suhaimi, Wahyudi Wayid and Izzdin Shafiq, Van Huizen was unveiled as one of the new LionsXII signings by Fandi Ahmad for the 2015 Malaysia Super League season. This marks a remarkable turnaround for the "boy from the reality series" to a potential national team player.[6]

Van Huizen made his LionsXII debut as a substitute in the opening game of the season, coming on to make a brief cameo appearance against PDRM FA in a 5–3 victory for the Lions.[7]

Tampines Rovers

Following the exit of LionsXII from the Malaysia Super League, Van Huizen rejoined Tampines Rovers in 2016. He scored his first goal of the season in a 1–2 win over Garena Young Lions, helping the Stags climb to joint-top of the 2016 S.League season.[8]

Garena Young Lions

On 1 July 2016, Van Huizen signed for Garena Young Lions. This was following a season at Tampines Rovers where he was used sparingly.[9][10]

Home United

On 2 January 2017, Van Huizen signed for Home United but only managed to play a small role in the squad.[11]

Geylang International

In 2019, Van Huizen signed for his boyhood club, Geylang International ahead of the 2019 Singapore Premier League season, when he racked up 10 assists, the highest in the league.[12] On 11 November 2021, he left Geylang International, considering retirement from football.[13][14]

Tampines Rovers

In January 2022, Van Huizen was given another chance by his former club, Tampines Rovers and signed a one year deal.[15]

Lion City Sailors

On 20 January 2023, Van Huizen joined Lion City Sailors ahead of the 2023 season.[16] On 13 August 2023, he scored his first goal for the club in a massive 2–8 victory against Hougang United.[17] On 4 October 2023, Van Huizen assisted Richairo Živković in the 2023–24 AFC Champions League group stage match to take the lead against Hong Kong side, Kitchee which would see Lion City Sailors ending up in a 2–1 away win.[18][19]

International career

Having impressed in his first season in the 2014 S.League Season, Van Huizen was rewarded with a call-up to the Singapore U-21 squad, by Richard Bok, for the Thanh Niên Cup in Vietnam.[20][21]

In 2015, Van Huizen was called up to the senior team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.[22] He made his senior team international debut in a 3-0 loss against Japan, coming on with 10 minutes left on the clock.[23] He earned his third cap in a friendly against Myanmar, coming on for the final 15 minutes of the game.[24]

In 2022, Van Huizen was included in the team for the 2022 FAS Tri-Nations Series and 2022 AFF Championship tournament.[25][26]

On 12 October 2023, Van Huizen scored his first international goal agaisnt Guam in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. [27][28]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 27 Sept 2023.[29]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup[lower-alpha 1] League Cup[lower-alpha 2] Asia Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Tampines Rovers 2014 Singapore Premier League 4100410082
Total 4100410082
LionsXII 2015 Malaysia Super League 183000000183
Total 183000000183
Tampines Rovers 2016 Singapore Premier League 101100000111
Total 101100000111
Young Lions 2016 Singapore Premier League 6000000060
Total 6000000060
Home United 2017 Singapore Premier League 90300050170
2018 Singapore Premier League 120100050180
Total 2104000100350
Geylang International 2019 Singapore Premier League 221100000231
2020 Singapore Premier League 122000000122
2021 Singapore Premier League 191000000191
Total 534100000544
Tampines Rovers 2022 Singapore Premier League 203600010273
Total 203600010273
Lion City Sailors 2023 Singapore Premier League 171100010191
Total 171100010191
Career total 149131304112017814

International
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Singapore 201520
201620
202210
Total50

International goals
Scores and results list Singapore's goal tally first.
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 12 October 2023 National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore  Guam 1–0 2–1 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

LionsXII


Individual

Notes
  1. Includes Singapore Cup
  2. Includes Singapore League Cup

Personal life

Aside from playing football, Chris enjoys skating as a side hobby and has participated in different skating competitions around Singapore. [30]

References
  1. "Van Huizen: From FirstXI to LionsXII". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  2. "Christopher Van Huizen Player Profile". xinmsn. Archived from the original on 28 July 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  3. "Football really is a beautiful game". TODAY. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  4. "Football: 5 things to know about Singaporean midfielder Christopher van Huizen". The Straits Times. 5 November 2015. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  5. "Stags arrive in Phonm Penh for pre-season training tour". Tampines Rovers FC. Archived from the original on 20 January 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
  6. "Van Huizen: From FirstXI to LionsXII". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  7. "FourFourTwo Player Ratings: LionsXII 5 PDRM 3". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  8. "Young Lions Give Stags A Run For Their Money".
  9. "Young Lions sign Tampines winger Christopher Van Huizen". Archived from the original on 3 July 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  10. "Van Huizen set to revive career with young Lions". TODAY. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  11. Ganesan, Deepanraj (20 February 2020). "Geylang's Chris van Huizen rediscovers the wind beneath his wings". The New Paper. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  12. Ganesan, Deepanraj (20 February 2020). "Geylang's Chris van Huizen rediscovers the wind beneath his wings". The New Paper. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  13. "The club confirms that we will part ways with Danny Kim, Asshukrie Wahid, Izzdin Shafiq and Firdaus Kasman. We thank them for being part of the GIFC family and wish them the best in their future 🦅". www.instagram.com.
  14. Auto, Hermes (3 October 2021). "Football: Contemplating retirement, super-sub van Huizen delivers for Geylang International | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  15. Auto, Hermes (31 March 2022). "Football: Stags' renaissance man van Huizen relishing second chance after retirement U-turn | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  16. "At the peak of his powers and relishing his biggest challenge yet: Chris". Lion City Sailors FC. 20 January 2023. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  17. Sailors, Lion City (14 August 2023). "Emphatic end to SPL assignment as Sailors now turn to ACL mission". Lion City Sailors FC. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  18. "Kitchee tripped up by Singapore's Lion City Sailors in AFC Champions League loss". South China Morning Post. 4 October 2023. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  19. Ganesan, Deepanraj (4 October 2023). "Experienced Richairo Zivkovic leads Lion City Sailors to Asian Champions League football victory". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  20. "Van Huizen: From FirstXI to LionsXII". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  21. "ANNOUNCEMENT OF UNDER-21 SQUAD FOR VIETNAM NEWSPAPER CUP". Archived from the original on 1 December 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  22. Auto, Hermes (5 October 2015). "Football: Christopher van Huizen gets call-up as Lions host two key World Cup qualifying ties | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  23. "Van Huizen looking for more after dream debut". FourFourTwo. Archived from the original on 17 November 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2016.
  24. "Shock recall gives Van Huizen hope for Suzuki Cup spot with Singapore". ESPNFC.
  25. Auto, Hermes (17 March 2022). "Football: Four uncapped players called up for Singapore's March friendlies | The Straits Times". www.straitstimes.com. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  26. Tan, Amanda (20 December 2022). "Five players in Singapore squad to take part in AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 for the first time". youthopia.sg. Retrieved 10 January 2023.
  27. "Singapore takes a slender lead going into second leg of first round qualifier of World Cup 2026 - Football Association of Singapore". www.fas.org.sg. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  28. "Singapore edge past Guam in World Cup qualifiers". Khel Now. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
  29. van Huizen at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  30. Admin (2 April 2014). "Recap: Red Bull Local Hero Tour". Straatosphere. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
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