Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem

Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem (born 4 July 2000) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for FC Goa in the Indian Super League.[2] He gained fame for his performance at the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup held in India.[3]

Dheeraj Singh
Personal information
Full name Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem
Date of birth (2000-07-04) 4 July 2000
Place of birth Manipur, India
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Club information
Current team
 FC Goa
Number 1
Youth career
AIFF Elite Academy
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2017 Indian Arrows 6 (0)
2018–2019 Kerala Blasters 13 (0)
2019–2020 ATK 1 (0)
2020—2021 ATK Mohun Bagan 0 (0)
2021— FC Goa 1 (0)
National team‡
2015–2017 India U17 18 (0)
2019– India U23 3 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 9 February 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 02 April 2019

Career

Early life and career

Born in Manipur, Dheeraj was part of the AIFF Elite Academy batch that was preparing for the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup to be hosted in India.[4] After the tournament, Singh was selected to play for the Indian Arrows, an All India Football Federation-owned team that would consist of India under-20 players to give them playing time.[5] He made his professional debut for the side in the Arrow's first match of the season against Chennai City. He started and kept the clean sheet as Indian Arrows won 3–0.[6] On 31 December 2017 he ended his contract with the AIFF to attend trials in Europe, beginning with Motherwell in the Scottish Premiership.[7]

Kerala Blasters

Dheeraj represented Kerala Blasters in the 2018–19 Indian Super League season.[8] He was the first choice goalkeeper for the club. Dheeraj played his first match for the club on 29 September 2018 in the opening fixture of the 2018-19 Indian Super League season against ATK which ended 0-2 to the Blasters.[9] He played 13 league matches and one Super Cup match with the club.[10] He pulled off some miraculous saves earning praises from different managers. His stunning performance in the season for Blasters earned him place in the India U23 National Team.[11]

ATK

After an impressive season for Kerala Blasters, Dheeraj signed for Indian Super League side ATK for the 2019-20 season.[12] He played just one match for ATK throughout the campaign as he was charted on the lineup on 22 February 2020 for the match against Bengaluru FC which ended in 2-2 draw.[13] He has also signed a football sponsorship deal with PUMA.

ATK Mohun Bagan FC

After the merger of ATK with Mohun Bagan, Dheeraj signed for ATK Mohun Bagan FC for the 2020-21 Indian Super League Season.[14]

FC Goa

On 15 January 2021, it was announced that Dheeraj has signed a three year deal with FC Goa.[15] He made his debut for Goa on 29 November against SC East Bengal.[16]

International

India U17

Dheeraj represented the India U17 side that participated in the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup which was hosted in India.[17] He was the first choice goalkeeper and played all three group matches that India had. Even though he couldn't keep a clean sheet in any of the World Cup games, he was highly praised by fans and various managers for his technique and skills.[18]

India U23

Even though he could earn a place in the U23 Indian National team.[19] Dheeraj was again the first choice goalkeeper for India U23 for the 2020 AFC U-23 Championship qualifiers. He earned his spot in the team after a brilliant season with the Kerala Blasters FC in the 2018-19 ISL Season. He made his debut against Qatar U23 in an international friendly preparatory match for the 2019 AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers.[20]

Career statistics

As of 29 January 2021[21]

Club Season League Cup Continental Total
DivisionApps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Indian Arrows 2017–18 I-League6 0————60
Kerala Blasters 2018–19 Indian Super League13 010——140
ATK 2019–20 1 0————10
ATK Mohun Bagan 2020-21 0 0 — — — — 0 0
FC Goa 2020-21 1 0 — — — — 1 0
Career total 21 010——220

References
  1. "Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem profile - Goals, Passes and more". Indian Super League. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  2. Warrier, Sajith B. (16 January 2021). "ISL Transfer Watch: FC Goa rope in Dheeraj Singh on a long-term deal". My Khel. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  3. "ISL: Kerala Blasters sign U-17 World Cup goalkeeping sensation Dheeraj Singh on a permanent deal | FootballNews". www.timesnownews.com. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  4. Selvaraj, Jonathan (3 October 2017). "How 14,000 became 21: The story of India's history boys". ESPN.in. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  5. "Matos Names 25-member Indian Arrows Squad for Hero I-league 2017-18". The All India Football Federation. 29 November 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
  6. "Indian Arrows 3-0 Chennai City". Soccerway.
  7. "Dheeraj Singh quits Indian Arrows to pursue opportunities in Europe". ESPN.com. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
  8. "Kerala Blasters - Squad 2018/2019". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  9. "ATK v Kerala Blasters Match Report, 29/09/18, Indian Super League | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  10. "Dheeraj Singh". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  11. Marar, Nandakumar. "Dheeraj Singh — preparing in earnest for career breakthrough". Sportstar. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  12. "ATK - Squad 2019/2020". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  13. "Bengaluru v ATK Starting XIs, 22/02/20, Indian Super League | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  14. "ATK Mohun Bagan FC - Squad 2020/2021". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  15. "FC Goa sign Dheeraj as keeper Nawaz stalls on new deal". The Times of India. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  16. "ISL 2020-21 highlights, FCG vs SCEB: 10-man Goa hangs on for draw against SC East Bengal". Sportstar. 29 January 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  17. "2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup: India announce final 21-member squad | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  18. Quint, The (7 November 2019). "Remember U-17 Star Dheeraj Singh? He's Made It to the Big Leagues!". TheQuint. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  19. "U23 Men". All India Football Federation. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  20. "AFC U-23 Championship Qualifiers: India U-23 go down to Qatar in friendly". Sportskeeda. 12 March 2019. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  21. "India - D. Singh - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.