SINGAPORE — The Republic’s Foreign Sports Talent (FST) Scheme may have reaped the likes of table tennis Olympian Feng Tianwei, and Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup winners Daniel Bennett and Mustafic Fahrudin, but the scheme continues to divide the opinions of local fans and the community.

But Bennett and Mustafic, who boast a combined 218 international caps for Singapore, believe that it can help give the Lions a much-needed boost as the national team looks to achieve success on the South-east Asian and regional stage.

According to media reports, head coach V Sundramoorthy is looking to naturalise the foreign trio of Jordan Webb, Song Ui-young and Sirina Camara — who hail from Canada, South Korea and France, respectively — and Singapore’s veteran defenders say the time is ripe for the Republic to recruit a few good players to beef up its teams.

China-born Qiu Li was the last product of the scheme in 2008, with Bennett and Mustafic — who ply their trade at S.League club Tampines Rovers — the only remaining foreign talents in Sundram’s latest squad.

“As long as you have the right players with a good mentality ... if they are settled and happy, and want to make Singapore their home, why not?” said Bennett, 39, in an interview earlier this week.

“We’ve proved before that it helps Singapore football and I believe there are a few players here now that the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is probably looking at ... I think there are two or three now who could probably make some kind of difference, because we don’t have the number of players here that other countries have.”

Webb, 29, plays for Warriors FC while Song, 23, and Camara, 26, are at Home United. All three players fulfil Fifa’s five-year residency requirement for naturalisation.

Centre-back Bennett, who was born in England and has accumulated a record 134 caps since making his international debut in 2002, said that Singapore has a smaller player base to choose from compared with other countries, and the FSTs could provide more options. “There’s room for more competition — it’ll keep players on their toes,” he said.

“At the moment, we have limited resources in terms of personnel. I believe the ones who are available now would probably be very happy to be Singaporean and make Singapore their home. I think it’ll be a good thing.”

Serbia-born Mustafic, who made his Lions bow in 2006, added: “It’s always good to have those players that they’ve been talking about recently, like Song, Camara and Jordan.

“I think they are good examples; they’ve been around here, the players are comfortable with them, and to have them as an option will be good for Singapore football. The national team should be a dream for everyone … so the more choices for the coach, it will be a stronger national team … that should be the way, to have healthy competition.”

While there are concerns that the return of foreign talents could hinder the path to the national team for young players, Bennett believes the best will still get their chance to shine.

One such example is 19-year-old Irfan Fandi, who looks set to start alongside Bennett in Singapore’s Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup qualifier against Taiwan on 
Saturday.

The Home United footballer made his international debut last October in a 2-0 friendly loss to Hong Kong, and also put in assured defensive displays against Afghanistan and Bahrain in March. The eldest son of football legend Fandi Ahmad, Irfan’s conversion from striker to centre-back appears to have reaped rewards, and Bennett believes he will go on to be a star.

“For his age, he is very composed and very mature,” he said. “He’s physically strong, competitive and mentally tough. It doesn’t seem to faze him, playing the big games.

“The Bahrain game was the first time I played with him and he’s got a very bright future. He can also play upfront, which is always a good option, he’s strong in the box in both areas. He’s just got to keep his feet on the ground and I think he’s got the best mentor for that in his father.”