Kolkata: It comes as a great news to Indian football fans as the country’s first choice goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, is all set to return to India and join the Indian Super League.
Gurpreet, who became the first Indian to play in a UEFA tournament (played in the Europa League) had joined Norwegian club Stabaek FC in 2014 from East Bengal.
Stabaek put up a statement in their official website to confirm the departure. The statement read, “Gurpreet Singh Sandhu has been part of Stabaek’s team since 2014, but is now traveling to India where there are new challenges waiting.”
“We thank Gurpreet for the time we have had together and wish him good luck in his career,” the club added.
According to reports, the club’s manager Toni Ordinas who had promoted Gurpreet ahead of Ivorian goalkeeper Sayouba Mande during the season was quoted as saying, “Singh has been a good person to have in the club and has developed a lot with time in Stabaek. Now he has made a club change which I think will be good for him.”
The 25-year old had been with the Norwegian club for the last three seasons and made a total of 9 appearances for the senior team while also making 39 appearances for the Stabaek B team.
The current Indian no. 1 goalkeeper set a record when he made his debut for the senior Stabaek team in 2015, becoming the first Indian to play in the top division European League. He also made one appearance in the UEFA Europa League for the club, but was replaced soon because of an injury.
He also played in the Eliteserien (earlier name Tippeligaen) league, which is the top division league in Norwegian football. But was benched after leaking seven goals in two matches.
Although it has not been confirmed that he will be joining the ISL, his departure from Stabaek just hours before the Norwegian transfer window closed has alerted a host of of ISL clubs, with Bengaluru FC and Kerala Blasters the front runners to get his signature.