'Bad Boy' of local football is back

FOUR years ago, he left in a blaze of media glory for the big money and even bigger crowds of football-mad Indonesia.

"I feel like a millionaire; a proper footballer," Noh Alam Shah said then of the reception he received upon joining Arema Malang in September 2009. He is believed to have been on $10,000 a month and was playing in front of 35,000-strong crowds.

But, over four years and some undelivered pay cheques later, he decided in August that he had had just about enough of the game he so loved.

"I didn't have any motivation left," said the 33-year-old, who revealed that, "like a charity", he has elected to overlook unpaid wages at clubs like Arema, PSS Sleman and Persekap Pasuruan.

"I thought of coming back and not playing football any more.

"I wanted to try something else, like academy coaching."

Motivation, however, came calling in October, in the form of a man Alam Shah calls "my boss".

And true to his "Godfather" moniker, Teo Hock Seng's offer was one that the temperamental striker could not refuse.

"It's always about my boss," Alam Shah said of his decision to rejoin Teo's Great Eastern-Yeo's S-League champions Tampines Rovers on a one-year deal.

He had made the return before, albeit with little success.

A four-month spell with the Stags at the end of the 2012 season reaped zero goals from 16 appearances - a disappointing return for a player who, in 2007, scored seven goals against Laos in an ASEAN Football Championship match. Boasting 35 goals in 80 international appearances, the 2005 S-League Player of the Year also bagged over 100 strikes for Tampines from 2003 to 2009.

"He's not as sharp as before," Stags chairman Teo acknowledged. "But the determination is still there."

Besides, Alam Shah's fiery character is as vital to the team off the field as it is on it.

Fiercely competitive, he infamously kneed Singapore Armed Forces FC (now Warriors FC) defender Daniel Bennett in the head during the 2007 Singapore Cup final - an offence which earned him a seven-month ban.

"I think he's toned down over the years," said Teo, who earlier stated his desire to inject some aggression into what he felt was an increasingly complacent side.

"But he's still one of those players who can motivate everyone around him."

There will, however, be no Tampines return for Ridhuan Muhamad. The winger, 29, left the Stags for Arema together with Alam Shah and had been tipped for a return to the club. But Teo said the squad are "a bit full".

With 21 of their 22-man squad already in place for next season, the Stags are still on the hunt for a star signing to lead their attack. But whether that search ultimately bears fruit, new coach Salim Moin can always count on an Alam Shah desperate to make up for last year's disappointment.

"I never expected to be given another chance by my boss," said the ex-Lions striker. "For me, it's very important that I repay him." And he hopes to do it in the same No. 18 shirt he wore when he burst onto the scene over a decade ago. "I've come full circle," he said of his choice.

"I started with 18 and I think I'll finish with 18."

Alam Shah remained coy as to when that "finish" will be. But there is no question who it will be under. "I will want to finish my career playing for my boss," he said.

Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.