Top ten Indian men's players with overseas stints

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Sunil Chhetri, and Bhaichung Bhutia have all had overseas stints.

Even though Indian football has gone through some major ups and downs over its history, there have been some notable footballers to have been able to represent them at the global level. Even though there have been no instances of Indian footballers in major European leagues, quite a few Indian footballers have been able to play abroad in their careers.

This includes playing in some rather competitive divisions, which helped these Indian footballers gain some valuable experience of playing outside India. That experience itself aided a few of these footballers to excel for the Indian national team or their clubs, helping them grow as footballers as well. Here, we look at the 10 Indian players to have enjoyed overseas stints in the past.

10. Sahil Tavora

Sahil Tavora has had a pretty decorated career in the Indian Super League (ISL), playing for the likes of Mumbai City, Hyderabad FC and Punjab FC before his current stint with FC Goa. Tavora gained his reputation for his goal in the 2021-22 ISL final, and he joined Hyderabad FC after a short playing stint in Portugal! In 2018, Tavora joined Portuguese side GDSC Alvarenga, which played in the Campeonato de Portugal (fourth division).

Tavora made 26 appearances for the Portuguese club in the campaign, even scoring a goal for them! He developed his skills with Alvarenga, learning the trades of being a more hard-working and efficient player. Tavora spent just one campaign with Alvarenga, but that helped him grow as a footballer to become a versatile, reliable campaigner who recently won the Super Cup title with FC Goa.

9. Romeo Fernandes

Romeo Fernandes emerged as an exciting winger in the Indian football scene after breaking through at Demp SC in 2011. He helped the Goan club win the 2011-12 I-League title, and his impressive performances earned him a lot of praise. Fernandes’ technical qualities, speed and awareness helped him earn a move to FC Goa in 2014 (the first season in the ISL).

After that, Fernandes was able to bag a major move to Brazilian side Atletico Paranaense in 2015. He impressed the head coach Enderson Moreira at Atletico Paranaense and also became the first Indian football to play in a South American competition professionally at the senior level. In his short stint with Atletico Paranaense, Fernandes made a few appearances for them before coming back to FC Goa a recharged person.

8. Ishan Pandita

Ishan Pandita gained quite a lot of experience in his early career as he was able to play in his youth career across multiple Spanish club. He played for Almeria’s under-18 side and also the U-19 team of Leganes, before starting his professional career with Catalonian club Pobla Mafumet. After a short stint with them in 2019, Pandita quickly joined up with Lorca FC, a team in the Tercera Division (fifth division) in Spanish football.

Pandita actually excelled for the Spanish side, scoring six goals in 26 appearances in the 2019-20 season, and being their top-scorer as well! Pandita went onto join FC Goa in 2020 to start playing in the Indian Super League (ISL), bringing a lot of experience with him. However, the 27-year-old forward has struggled to stamp himself as a really clinical striker in Indian football, with inconsistency plaguing him.

7. Sanjeev Stalin

Sanjeev Stalin earned his breakthrough in Indian football through his efforts for the India U17 national team. In fact, he was arguably one of the best players for the Blue Colts in the 2017 FIFA U17 World Cup, producing some really eye-catching performances. Stalin started his professional career playing for the Indian Arrows side for a few years, before making a major career decision in 2020. Just before the COVID-19 lockdown, Statlin joined up with Portuguese Primeira Liga side C.D. Alaves. For them, he played for their U23 and U19 teams.

In August 2020, Stalin decided to take a step forward by joining Portuguese third division club Sertanense. He spent almost a full season with them, making 35 appearances for the club. In March, 2021, Statin opted to return back to India by joining Kerala Blasters, but at least he learnt some new traits in his stint playing in Portugal.

6. Brandon Fernandes

Brandon Fernandes is widely considered as one of the most technically adept midfielders in Indian football, being renowned for his creativity and unique playing style. A major reason for Fernandes being technically so adept is probably because of how he develop as a footballer playing in South Afirca in the early stages of his career.

After impressing for the Salgaocar youth sides, Fernandes joined the ASD Football Academy in 2010. He spent quite a few years playing in South Africa, and he even debated for the ASD Cape Town side in the third-tier of South African football. Fernandes scored 12 goals for ASD Cape Town, having a prolific time working on his skills with the club before returning to Indian football.

5. Subrata Paul

Better known as the ‘Spiderman’ of Indian football, Subrata Paul had a highly decorated career in which he enjoyed success for club(s) and country. Paul really gained a surge in popularity after his heroics for India at the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, which allowed him to get recognized by people outside India as well.

Subrata was, thus, able to earn a short loan move to Danish superliga side FC Vestsjaelland. He became the fourth Indian footballer to play football for a foreign team, but Paul never really made an appearance for Festsjaelland’s senior team. He played matches for their reserve squad, but this experience of playing in Denmark had a positive influence on helping Paul cut out some mistakes in his game and become a more all-round goalkeeper.

4. Bhaichung Bhutia

Bhaichung Bhutia is definitely one of the most fondly remembered Indian footballer from the 21st century, as he enjoyed a highly memorable career with club and country! Bhutia scored 27 goals for the Blue Tigers, as well as having prolific stints at East Bengal and JCT in his career. In 1999, Bhutia also made a bold move to make a move to England to join Bury FC. He signed for the English club, becoming the first to sign a deal with a European club, and joined them in 1999.

He played for Bury FC in the League One, and he actually had a pretty memorable stint with the club. Bhutia scored eight goals in 37 games for Bury FC, being with the club for three years before moving back to India. He would also have a second stint for a foreign club in 2005, with a short period at Malaysian side Selangor MK Land, with these time abroad helping Bhutia able to test his skills against more formidable opposition.

3. Mohammed Salim

Mohammed Salim was the first-ever Indian player to play for a European club, and he was able to gain his reputation for his amazing performances in the Indian football scene. Salim was a star for the Mohammedan SC side that won five successive Calcutta Football League titles in the 1930s, and it was in 1936 that he took a huge plunge in his career to join Celtic FC.

Salim joined the club after wowing their representatives in his trial and his amazing performances for the Scottish giants quickly gained him a lot of popularity. Salim would go onto score important goals for Celtic, with the Scottish media labelling him as the ‘Indian Juggler’ because of his amazing skills. He only spent a short period at Celtic, but proved that an Indian football can excel in European football.

2. Sunil Chhetri

The greatest goalscorer for India at the international football stage is definitely Sunil Chhetri, whose proven that by scoring 95 goals for the Blue Tigers in his decorated international career. Chhteri rose to prominence by excelling for the likes of Mohun Bagan and JCT in the early 2000s, and his performances were so impressive that they attracted international attention.

In 2010, MLS side Kansas City Wizards joined the club and he even played for them in cup competitions and also in a friendly match against Manchester United! Chhetri also had a stint with Sporting CP’s reserve side in the 2012-13 season, gaining some valuable experience from the Portuguese football scene – which helped him become an even more ruthless goal-scorer.

1. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu is definitely one of the greatest goalkeepers ever produced in Indian football, as he has maintained admirable consistency with his performances over the last 15 years or so. Sandhu has 83 appearances for India in his career and excelled for clubs like East Bengal and Bengaluru FC in his career. In 2014, Sandhu was also able to take a major step upwards in his career by joining Norwegian top division club Stabaek. Gurpreet actually managed to do a commendable job at Stabaek, playing all their matches in the 2016 Norwegian Cup.

In 2016, Sandhu also became the first Indian player to feature in a UEFA Europa League match for Stabaek, featuring 30 minutes against Connah’s Quah Nomads! Sandhu returned form Danish football with more knowledge of how to excel as a top goalkeeper and has since been a loyal player for Bengaluru FC.

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