Having made his debut for Geylang International in the Singapore Cup this week, Philippines national team striker Mark Hartmann is hungry for more game time alongside Sahil Suhaimi.
The attacking duo were brought on in the 62nd minute in quarterfinal first leg against Albirex Niigata (S) on Tuesday as the visitors went in search of goals having gone 2-0 behind at Jurong East Stadium.
Along with the introduction of Lions winger Gabriel Quak, they wasted little time in piecing the attacking jigsaw together.
Hatmann became the first Filipino to sign for a Singapore club earlier this month. He felt his debut went well, after being sidelined with an anterior cruciate ligament injury since December 2015.
"This first experience was great. It just felt good to be back on the pitch after the longest time away from it," the former Global FC striker told ESPN FC.
"I still have a bit to go before I'm back to how I was before, but everything has been going smoothly since I joined Geylang.
"That sharpness will come back with a couple more games and I'm pushing to see more game time and hopefully, the second leg will be another chance to score my first goal in Singapore."
The second leg will be held at Jalan Besar Stadium on Friday. Hasrin Jailani's Eagles will look to overturn a 2-0 deficit against the in-form White Swans who made it 11 wins in 12 matches.
The Geylang coaches could be tempted to reshuffle the lineup by giving Hartmann and Sahil the chance to lead the attack from the start, along with Quak, and Stanley Ng coming into the side.
While Hartmann knows it will be a tough ask to get through to the semifinals, the Azkals forward is setting his sights on forging a strike partnership with Sahil for the remainder of the season.
"Going one goal down early [Albirex scored 12 seconds into the game] made it extremely difficult for the team to play our own game," he said.
"But we came back and played very well. This is a cup tie so anything is possible. If we score early in the second leg, the positive feeling could carry us through.
"As for partnering Sahil in attack, considering that this was our first game together, the link up wasn't bad at all.
"I think it is a sign of good things to come. We have a lot of intelligent attackers at Geylang and with more time on the field together, it'll only get better."
If Geylang can overturn the deficit and make it to the final four, Hartmann has a chance of going up against his former club. UFL giants Global FC will go into their return leg against Tampines Rovers on Saturday with a 3-1 deficit.