Coach Biniano Fernandes will lead a young Bengaluru FC side in the Durand Cup and the pressure will straight away be on the youngsters as they will have to compete with Gokulam Kerala who are sitting pretty on the top of the group with two wins in two matches.
After a low-key start to the match, Kerala Blasters started dominating ball possession. But to everybody’s surprise, Bouba Aminou fired a goal for Gokulam from a Nili Perdomo corner to put his side ahead in the derby.
Sourav and Sreekuttan scored on either side of the half as the IAFFT could not match up to the Malabarians, despite Sourav Sadhukan coming in the second half and showing enterprise in front of goal. This was the first match of the group which also has Kerala Blasters and defending champions
Chhetri is one of the biggest football legends India has produced. He has wonnumerous titles at club and international level and rivals with greats like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in terms of goal-scoring.
The 24-year-old is a polished product of Tata Football Academy. He has packs of experience having gone through the footballing ranks of Indian Arrows, ATK (reserves), and Bengaluru FC. A Durand Cup winner, Lara had also represented the national team U18 side.
The Manipur-born midfielder adds to the growing pool of talented prospects from the region to sign for the Highlanders ahead of the 2023-24 season. Thoi began his professional football journey at a very young age and was nurtured at the Young Champs Academy.
Group C features two ISL teams in the shape of southern rivals Bengaluru FC and Kerala Blasters FC, who have been rubbed shoulders in many crunch games last season.
Punjab FC has announced the signing of three exciting talents – midfielders Leon Augustine and Prasanth K. Mohan, and defender Melroy Assisi for the upcoming 2023-24 season. Leon and Prasanth come with Indian Super League (ISL) experience as they are signed from Bengaluru FC and Chennayin FC
Williams began his youth career with ECU Joondalup before joining Portsmouth FC in 2010. He began his senior professional career with Fulham FC and was later loaned out to Gillingham, Barnsley and Oxford United.
Both players have signed two-year contracts with the Highlanders, marking an exciting new phase in their football journeys. Both Fredy and Shighil Nambrath honed their skills in the youth setup at Bengaluru FC, showcasing their prowess in 2nd Division League matches.
Two of the big names include former Bengaluru FC duo Udanta Singh and Sandesh Jhingan, who recently were in action for the national team in the recently-concluded, Intercontinental Cup and SAFF Championships, where the Blue Tigers emerged as champions.
The two-time Indian Super League (ISL) Golden Boot winner has travelled to Oslo to get some pre-season minutes with his former club Stabaek Fotball just a few days after securing the SAFF Championship title with India. His stint at the Norwegian side didn’t go unnoticed as the shot-stopper w