ISL 4: Sandhu set to be dearest of them all
With BFC playing on the continental level this season as well as the next one will provide the perfect platform for me.
Time will tell whether Gurpreet Singh Sandhu’s Europe sojourn is over for good but by signing him, Bengaluru FC have got a top-notch goalie without compromising on their quota of foreigners for the fourth edition of the Indian Super League (ISL).
Sandhu’s three-year deal with Norway’s Stabaek FC was scheduled to end this year and he is now the first Indian for whom an Indian club paid a transfer fee to a European club.
It’s a record that could stay for some time.
Bengaluru FC didn’t disclose the transfer amount. Sandhu’s salary too hasn’t been made public but given that he is India’s No. 1 goalie and the only Indian to have played in a Europa League match, it is likely to be in the top bracket.
That means he could be paid between Rs 1.2-Rs 1.5 crore for this season. Top that up with the transfer fee and Sandhu, 25, could be the most expensive Indian in ISL4.
The Bengaluru FC media officer didn’t return calls from Hindustan Times seeking a reaction on this.
Hindustan Times has learnt that at least four clubs including Bengaluru FC were trying for Sandhu. One was trying to get a club in Spain to buy Sandhu and then take him on loan for ISL4. Another was ready to offer a fiveyear deal but the prospect of playing in the AFC Cup could have got Sandhu to sign for Bengaluru FC.
“With BFC playing on the continental level this season as well as the next one will provide the perfect platform for me,” Sandhu was quoted as saying in a media release on Thursday.
For now, Sandhu’s time in football’s most developed continent stays ordinary like it was for Bhaichung Bhutia and Sunil Chhetri but the deal is a steal for Bengaluru FC.
Because Sandhu can now be among the reserves for ISL4. And, according to the rules, because he is a goalie he won’t have to wait out five rounds before he is eligible to be a replacement. Before Sandhu joined, Abhra Mondal, Calvin Abhishek and Lalthuammawia Ralte were the club’s shot-stoppers.