As a result, he entered SMK Seksyen 11 (Sekolah Sukan Selangor) and Bukit Jalil Sports School from 2003 to 2004 to further his studies.
In the 2008 Malaysia President Cup final, Safiq's only goal gave Selangor U-21 a 1-0 win over Perak U-21.
[18] Safiq made his season debut for Selangor in a 1–2 win over Negeri Sembilan in the Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Cup at Tuanku Abdul Rahman Stadium.
On 23 February 2010, Safiq made his AFC Cup debut in a 0–0 draw against Vietnamese Becamex Bình Dương at Shah Alam Stadium.
On 30 June 2011, Indonesian club, Persib Bandung announced that they would give him a contract for the 2011–12 Indonesia Super League season, which he later chose to reject.
[38] On 18 February 2012, Safiq scored twice in a 0–4 win over Shahzan Muda for the FA Cup match in Temerloh Mini Stadium.
On 25 August 2012, Safiq scored the first goal in a 2–2 draw against Pahang for the Malaysia Cup group stage match.
Three days later, in the Malaysia Cup campaign, Safiq scored a winning goal through a penalty kick in the 80th minute of the match.
As Selangor advanced to the quarter-finals of the Malaysia Cup, Safiq's other goal came in a 1–3 win over Johor FC on 25 September 2012 in the first leg.
After his contract with Selangor expired on 30 November 2012, Safiq was set to join Johor Darul Ta'zim for the 2013 season.
On 31 November 2015, he captained the side for the final, playing the full 90 minutes and being voted man of the match in a 1–0 victory against FC Istiklol at Pamir Stadium.
Safiq was named as the 2015 AFC Cup's Most Valuable Player and lauded his Johor Darul Ta’zim teammates after the club became the first from Malaysia to claim a continental title.
According to club owner, Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim described Safiq, who signed from Selangor back in 2013, as one of his best players as he helped the Southern Tigers achieve success in both domestic and international competitions.
He added in his latest Facebook post, “In my sincere opinion, he (Safiq) has been the most successful player at Johor Darul Ta’zim and has helped the Southern Tigers achieve our goals.
He signed a one-year contract for a Malacca-city-based club, alongside his national teammate, Razman Roslan and also Felda United's former captain Shukor Adan.
[3] On 3 July 2023, Safiq came off the bench and scored his 50th Malaysia Super League goal in a 6-1 win over Kuala Lumpur City.
Safiq also was part of the team which qualified for the 2006 AFC Youth Championship in India which they were finished at the bottom place of the group stage.
He earned his first full international cap against Myanmar in the 2007 ASEAN Football Championship in January 2007 at age 20.
[51] On 27 January 2015, FIFA.com has published an article about his expertise in taking a free kick after skippering his side to a runners-up finish in 2014 AFF Suzuki Cup.
On 10 October 2017, Safiq was shown a straight red card 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualifying match away to Hong Kong for stamping on Daniel Cancela.
[54][55] Safiq was selected by Malaysia to captain the Malaysian team in the 2010 AFF Championship co-hosted by Indonesia and Vietnam.
[60] In the final group stage match against Singapore, Safiq's combative display and enterprise shone through and he was statistically the player with the most passes and touches on the ball.
His best trait though is not in his cultured right foot, but in his mind, when he calmly converted the penalty in the Lion's den amidst the jeers and mocking by the partisan crowd helping Malaysia to progress to knockout stage.