ISL: Nishu Kumar joins East Bengal FC on one-year loan deal

KOLKATA: East Bengal FC have assigned Nishu Kumar on a one-year loan deal from Kerala Blasters FC, the club announced on Wednesday. In the 2022-23 edition of the Indian Super League (ISL), Nishu made 17 appearances and registered one assist, 12 interceptions, 22 clearances and 15 successful tackles. Besides, he also played every minute of KBFC's Super Cup 2023 campaign.

The 25-year-old won the ISL title with Bengaluru FC (BFC) in the 2018-19 season under current East Bengal FC Head Coach Carles Cuadrat. He was also part of the KBFC squad that finished runners-up in the 2021-22 ISL.

An am bipedal full-back, Nishu has the rare ability to operate on both sides of the pitch and will add great flexibility to the team. "It's a matter of great pride for me to join an iconic institution like East Bengal. This club has a huge fan base, which is always a great motivation for a player to give his best," Nishu said after joining the club.

"I am also thrilled to reunite with Coach Carles, who groomed me in my formative years at BFC. We will be playing a lot of matches in the upcoming season and I will give my best in every match and try to bring joy to our fans that they truly deserve," he added.

Born in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar, Nishu Kumar learnt the rudiments of the game at the Chandigarh Football Academy before graduating from the AIFF Elite Academy. He then joined Bengaluru FC where he matured into a senior professional and has been one of the top full-backs in the ISL since.

Overall, in his 82 ISL matches so far, Nishu has racked up three goals, two assists, 82 interceptions and 189 clearances. Nishu is East Bengal FC's third signing of the summer after announcing the arrival of Nandhakumar Sekar from Odisha FC and Borja Herrera from Hyderabad FC.

The Red and Golds have also bid goodbye to eleven players as Cuadrat leads the revamp of the squad. Here are the eleven players that have left the club: Amarjit Singh Kiyam (End of Loan), Himanshu Jangra (End of Loan), Naveen Kumar (End of Loan), Suvam Sen (End of Contract), Sumeet Passi (End of Contract), Jerry Lalrinzuala (End of Contract), Semboi Haokip (End of Contract), Charalambos Kyriakou (End of Contract), Jake Jervis (End of Contract), Alex Lima (End of Contract), Jordan O'Doherty (End of Contract).