The only Indian to have ever appeared in the Europa League, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu joined Bengaluru from Norwegian side Stabaek FC ahead of the 2017-18 campaign. In his first season with the Blues, Gurpreet held the Golden Glove award until the final game of the campaign before winning the Super Cup title later that year. An Arjuna Awardee, and India’s first-choice custodian, Gurpreet is Bengaluru’s guardian between the goalposts for at least another four years, having signed a five-year contract with the club at the start of the 2018-19 campaign. With his stellar performances in goal, the Blues managed to win the Indian Super League in their second attempt, as Gurpreet was handed the Golden Glove award.

Lalthuammawia Ralte is not a new name for the Bengaluru FC faithful, having been a part of the side in four title winning campaigns. He helped the Blues win the I-League title in his debut season and then took guard between the sticks in the club’s run to the AFC Cup final the following term. The 27-year-old began his professional career with Shillong Lajong in 2011, and helped the Meghalayan side reach the semifinals of the 2011 Federation Cup.

A product of the Tata Football Academy, Lara Sharma has picked up quite a bit of experience despite his young age. He was part of the Indian U-18 team which came third in the 2017 SAFF U-18 Championship, he has played in the I-League with the Indian Arrows before moving to the ISL with ATK. In Kolkata, he helped the team’s reserve side gain back-to-back promotions and make it to the first division of the Calcutta Football League. The 21-year-old Manchester City fan who grew up idolizing Joe Hart hopes to emulate BFC custodian Gurpreet – both at club and country levels.

From being left out at the Indian Super League draft three years ago to scoring the winner in the final at his hometown, life really did come full circle for Rahul Bheke. A versatile defender with a long throw in his arsenal, Bheke was the Blues’ second pick at the Indian Super League draft of 2017. Capable of playing in all four defensive positions, Bheke was named the Players’ Player of the Season and Goal of the Season in his second season with the Blues, the latter for his 117th minute header which won Bengaluru its maiden Indian Super League title. In what was a delayed but a just reward for his efforts, Bheke was called up to the Senior Indian National Team squad for the Kings Cup in Thailand, where he made his debut for the Blue Tigers.

Pratik Chaudhari was Mumbai City’s first-choice center-back last term, playing 17 games and picking up a goal and assist, and just missed out on a play-off spot with a fifth-placed finish. The Blues had the strongest defense last season and campaign and the versatile defender’s arrival will further strengthen an already formidable backline. He started his career with Air India in 2011, before stints at Mohun Bagan, Mumbai FC and Rangdajied United in the I-League. BFC will be his fifth Indian Super League club, with the 30-year-old having turned out for Kerala Blasters, Delhi Dynamos and Jamshedpur FC, apart from the Islanders, earlier.

The club’s current longest-serving foreigner, Juanan Gonzalez joined the club ahead of their historic run to the 2016 AFC Cup final. Having turned out for Real Madrid’s Castilla side after a youth career at Mallorca and San Francisco, Juanan traveled to Germany, Hungary and the USA where he represented Fortuna Dusseldorf, Ujpest and Rayo OKC respectively. A no-nonsense defender with a penchant for scoring at important moments, Juanan netted the Blues’ third and final goal against Johor Darul Ta’zim in their 3-1 win at the Fortress in October 2016. Juanan has taken to Bengaluru like a fish to the water, imbibing as much of the culture as possible in his three years at the club so far. His love for the club and city saw Juanan etch one of its famous monuments, the Shiva Temple, to his sleeve as a tattoo.

A midfielder by trade, Harmanjot Khabra’s versatility has been his greatest strength since his move to Bengaluru in 2017. Graduating from the famed TATA Football Academy, Khabra joined Goa’s Sporting Clube and then went on to sign with and captain Kolkata club, East Bengal. The 30-year-old was Chennaiyin FC’s first pick at the inaugural Indian Super League player draft and won the title the following season. His time with East Bengal saw him lift the Federation Cup three times, the Calcutta Football League seven times and the IFA Shield in 2012. Often deployed at right-back, Khabra offers the Blues the opportunity to switch formations without looking at the bench, with his ability to move into midfield seamlessly to close games out.

A defensive midfielder by trade, Wungngayam Muirang started his career with the Sports Authority of India in Imphal before joining the Shillong Lajong academy. After representing India in the Bayern Munich Youth Cup in 2014, he joined Pune FC where he won the Gold Cup in Goa and the Administration Cup in Chandigarh. He later joined ISL side FC Pune City and helped their U19 side to a historic IFA Shield triumph. The 21-year-old has spent the last two seasons in the I-League with Gokulam Kerala and is also capable of dropping back into the defence – either a as center-back or as a left-back.

Ajith Kumar’s rise is not a common story in the country. He won multiple titles at college level, was quickly selected to play in the Santosh Trophy and won the I-League as an amateur in his first full professional season in the sport – playing all 20 games in the campaign. He even experienced continental football last season before the pandemic brought the competition to a halt. Blessed with pace and stamina, the 23-year-old actually began his career as a left-winger before spending most of his time in the youth teams as a midfielder.

Joe Zoherliana came up the ranks at Shillong Lajong FC. After a season at Chanmari FC, he moved to the FC Pune City reserves side in 2018 before shifting closer to home with Aizawl FC. The 20-year-old is a versatile defender who is at home on either flank and is not shy of a strong challenge.

Among the most versatile players to come out of the Bengaluru FC B setup, Parag Shrivas can play along the left flank as a full-back, winger and has even started as a striker in some of the developmental side’s BDFA Super Division League and Puttaiah Memorial Cup games. He made his debut for the first team in the club’s clash against Jamshedpur FC at the JRD TATA Sports Complex, slotting in at left-back for the final 30 minutes. Parag was named the BFC B Player of the Year for his impressive performances, and has been drafted into the first team for a second season on the trot.

A journeyman in his own right, Erik Paartalu played for clubs in Australia, Scotland, China, Thailand, Qatar and South Korea before making the switch to Bengaluru in 2017. Capped twice by the Australian National Team, Paartalu is tasked with what footballers call the ‘dirty work’, heckling opposition midfielders and breaking down potential attacks. With a long diagonal punt to die for, Paartalu also plays a key role in Cuadrat’s attacking intent, providing the passes for Udanta and Chhetri to run onto while providing cover for the Blues’ defence line. The defining moment of Paartalu’s career, by his own admission, came when he scored Brisbane Roar’s equaliser with the last touch of the game in the 120th minute in the A-League final of 2011.

Having joined the club through open trials for the Residential Academy setup in 2016, Ajay Chhetri was among the longest serving members of the BFC B squad before being drafted into the senior team last season. A midfielder with intelligence beyond his years, Ajay keeps his game simple by recycling possession and connecting defence and midfield. The 20-year-old put on strong performances for the reserve side in their Durand Cup campaign, scoring their only goal against East Bengal in Kolkata and is touted to have a big role to play in years to come.

With the ability to turn a stone into a cotton ball, Dimas Delgado is Bengaluru FC’s magician in the middle. At 36, his best years may be behind him, but Dimas continues to defy age and time with his performances in the 2018-19 Indian Super League testament to that. A product of the FC Gramenet academy, Dimas was a pupil at Pep Guardiola’s FC Barcelona B before moving south to Numancia, Cartagena and Recreativo de Huelva in a seven-year spell. His travels then took him to Australia where he captained Western Sydney Wanderers in the A-League for two campaigns. Since his move to Bengaluru in 2017, Dimas has been a focal figure at the club, providing the assist from a corner for Rahul Bheke’s 117th minute strike in the 2018-19 Indian Super League final.

From the sugarcane fields of Malappuram to the Blues’ dressing room, Ashique Kuruniyan’s story is one of grit and determination. Going through the ranks in his district and state teams, Ashique turned out for Pune FC in the U19 I-League before moving to the FC Pune City academy in 2016. A loan deal saw the youngster fly to Spain where he represented La Liga giants Villarreal CF’s reserve team before making his India U19 bow. Among India’s rising young stars, Ashique made his Senior National Team debut at the AFC Asian Cup in 2019 and formed a lethal partnership with Sunil Chhetri and Udanta Singh up front. Having signed with the Blues, he will now hope that the chemistry is forged at club level.

Another graduate of the AIFF Elite Academy, Suresh Wangjam began his career with the Bir Chandra Memorial Sports Club in Manipur, was selected to represent the India U14s in 2014 and was also a part of the national team that took part in the FIFA U17 World Cup in 2017. Before joining the Blues, 18-year-old Wangjam spent two years alongside Prabhsukhan in the Indian Arrows setup. A midfielder who adds steel to Cuadrat’s squad, Wangjam represented the Bengaluru FC B side in their Durand Cup campaign of 2019, scoring three times from the spot to finish the tournament as the Blues’ top-scorer.

Roshan began playing football at a young age before his impressive performances in the BC Roy Junior National Championship for home state Manipur caught the eye of the AIFF Scouts. He spent the next two years with the AIFF Elite Academy in Goa, before playing for Indian Arrows in the I-League. After representing India at the AFC U19 Championship qualifiers in Saudi Arabia, the left-footed attacker arrived in Bengaluru in what was his first stint with a professional club. In fact, in his first season he played for the Blues in both the U18 Youth League as well as the 2nd Division League. The 2018-19 season turned out to be the most productive for Roshan who helped the Blue Colts win the Puttaiah Memorial Cup and the BDFA Super Division League apart from topping the Group in the 2nd Division. His performances even earned him a call-up to the Karnataka team which made the semifinal in the Santosh Trophy. Roshan, who was named the BFC B skipper for the 2019-20 season, led the Blues in their second Durand Cup appearance where they finished second in the Group behind East Bengal.

Joined BFC: March 2018

Honours: BDFA Super Division League 2018-19, Puttaiah Memorial Cup 2018-19

Previous Teams: AMOFA Manipur, AIFF Elite Academy (Goa), Indian Arrows

The club’s longest serving player and the only one to have played all six seasons in Bengaluru blue, Sunil Chhetri is a name that needs no introduction. India’s all-time highest goalscorer and appearance maker, Chhetri has won six top-scorer awards in his time with Bengaluru and at 35, is still firing in the goals. Captain since the club’s inception in 2013, Chhetri has played for India’s biggest clubs in Mohun Bagan, East Bengal, JCT and Dempo among others while also playing abroad with Sporting Kansas in the US and briefly with Sporting Club de Portugal ahead of his arrival in Bengaluru. Chhetri has over 150 appearances for BFC and going by the look of things, he has no plans of slowing down.

A graduate of the AIFF Elite Academy, Edmund Lalrindika represented the India U20 team and was drafted into the Indian Arrows setup in 2017. After a strong season with the Arrows, Lalrindika joined the BFC B squad in 2018. Returning from injury, he helped the developmental side to a BDFA Super Division and Puttaiah Memorial Cup triumph, scoring six goals in a single game as he went on to make his senior team debut, against Mumbai City FC at the Mumbai Football Arena in November. A striker with bouts of pace and the ability to take on defenders, Edmund made four appearances for Carles Cuadrat, winning a penalty against Jamshedpur FC.

Spotted by Pune FC while playing for the United Sports Association team in Khurai, Semboi, has he’s more popularly known, made his way through the ranks in Pune before graduating to the senior team in 2013. After loan spells with FC Goa and Salgaocar, Semboi moved to Kerala Blasters in 2016. Semboi moved to East Bengal on loan in 2017 before joining Bengaluru FC ahead of the maiden ISL season. While at Pune, Semboi went on to finish the 2014–15 I-League season as the top scorer among all Indians with seven goals. An important asset coming off the bench, Semboi played a crucial role in the Blues’ 2016-17 AFC Cup campaign, playing nine times and scoring three goals.

Arguably the fastest player in the country, when Udanta Singh gets on his bike there’s really no catching him. Having joined the club as a teenager in 2014, Udanta is a product of the TFA Academy and helped his side win the U19 I-League before making the switch to Bengaluru. Born in Manipur, the 23-year-old is blessed with bags of pace that he utilizes to run onto long diagonals and create chances. Among the most improved players in the Indian Super League last season, Udanta claimed the award for the highest number of assists in the 2017-18 campaign with seven to his name, including two in the final against Chennaiyin FC.

A Brazilian who can operate on either flank and down the middle, Cleiton Silva became the first foreign import to reach the 100-goal mark in Thailand and finished top scorer of the Thai League 1 for two seasons. He also tops the charts of the all-time leading scorers of the League. His biggest success came at Muangthong United, where he racked up 57 goals in 79 appearances and won three major trophies in as many seasons at the club.
The 33-year-old, who started his career with Brazilian side Madureira, moved to Thailand where he spent the better part of a decade playing for Muangthong United and Suphanburi, apart from stints in Mexico and China.

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