ISL: Odisha FC Sign Narender Gahlot on a Deal Till 2025

Odisha FC announced the signing of Narender Gahlot on a deal that will keep him at the Indian Super League (ISL) side until May 2025.

Narender came up through the Chandigarh Football Academy, where he started playing as a midfielder. Turned into a center-back by his coach, Gahlot excelled in the role and gradually developed into one of the most promising talents in the country.

After the tournament, he moved to Indian Arrows, where his reputation skyrocketed. Igor Stimac handed him his India senior team debut in Intercontinental Cup 2019. In his debut ISL campaign in 2019-20, Gahlot made 11 appearances for Jamshedpur FC.

Narender scored his first-ever international goal in his second match against Syria on 16 July 2019 at the EKA arena in Ahmedabad. With this goal, he became the first Indian player to score for the national team, born in the 21st century, and also became the then second-youngest goal scorer for the national team at the age of 18 years 83 days behind Jerry Zirsanga. Gahlot also won his first Player of the Match award in this match, as the game finished 1–1.

Till now, he has played 36 matches for Jamshedpur. His positioning and tackling skills make him one of the most promising central defenders in the country. Recently, he won the ISL League Winners’ Shield with the Men of Steel.

Club President, Raj Athwal added, “Narender brings a lot of quality and a winning mentality to our backline. As a young center-back, he has a lot of potential and we hope that he plays his best football for Odisha FC.

Odisha FC had earlier added Michael Soosai Raj on a 2-year deal after the winger’s contract came to an end with ATK Mohun Bagan as well as the signing of Nikhil Prabhu from Hyderabad FC for an undisclosed fee on another 2-year deal with an option to extend for a further year.