SINGAPORE - Local football legend and LionsXII head coach Fandi Ahmad's eldest son, Irfan Fandi, has been named one of The Guardian's 40 best young talents in world football.

The 17-year old forward was the only one named from Singapore, in the article posted on Tuesday (read it here). In it, writer John Duerden describes him as having "a good touch", with football bosses here having "high hopes that he can be the striker they have been searching for".

Indeed, Irfan has already received several notable mentions this year, and has achievements on the pitch to show for.

Last month, former technical director of the Football Association of Singapore, Slobodan Pavkovic, praised Irfan as a youngster with a bright future.

In August, Irfan and his younger brother Ikhsan, 15, inked a one-year athlete sponsorship agreement with Malaysian bank CIMB. The cash deal is worth six figures.

Irfan, who is in the national under-23 team, has also been training with Universidad Catolica, a top-tier Chilean club, since last December.

Earlier this year, the teenager was voted one of the Top 20 South-east Asian Rising Stars by online football fan site Goal.

brynasim@sph.com.sg