Who is Salahudheen Adnan? Mohun Bagan defender who caught the eye in Kalinga Super Cup 2025

The 23-year-old had an eye-catching first-team performance against Kerala Blasters FC.

Mohun Bagan stormed into the semifinals of the 2025 Kalinga Super Cup with a compelling 1-2 win over Kerala Blasters FC. What makes this win even more special is the fact that the Mariners fielded a relatively young, inexperienced squad filled with players from their reserve team as well.

One bright player who really stood out for Mohun Bagan was winger Salahudheen Adnan, who produced a wonderful display on the right wing. The winger proved to be an ideal replacement or alternative for Manvir Singh, adding a lot of explosiveness and trickery through the right flank.

The 23-year-old has proven himself as a fearless, unpredictable winger who is more than happy to take on defenders at regular intervals. His performance against Kerala Blasters was an admirable showcase to prove that he deserves more playing time with the Mohun Bagan senior squad going forward.

Career and Performances

Salahuddheen was born and raised in Kerala, where he kickstarted his footballing career as well. He showcased promise during his time coming up as a young player and was enrolled into the famous Muthoot FA (Football Academy) in Kerala as well.

He climbed the ranks at Muthoot FA and staretd earning his reputation, which saw him also get up to the reserves team for the academy too. Salahudheen really started to earn the attention of scouts with his performances in the 2024 Reliance Football Development League (RFDL) where he scored five goals and helped them reach the semi-finals of the competition.

Salahudheen even scored in the 2024 RFDL third-place playoff against Bengaluru FC, and started gaining praise for his innovative playing style and decisiveness in the final third. Mohun Bagan won the race to sign the young winger from Muthoot FA in the 2024 summer window, opting to add him to their reserves side for the first campaign. He officially made his debut for the Mariners in their 2024 Durand Cup opener, playing the entire game in the 1-0 win over Downtown Heroes.

The winger started to prove his quality for Mohun Bagan’s reserves side in the 2024/25 Calcutta Football League campaign. He scored six goals in the CFL league phase for them, which included a hattrick against Tollygunge Agragami as well as a brace against the Eastern Railway team.

Even though he was on the bench for a few of Mohun Bagan’s final matches of the 2024-25 Indian Super League (ISL) league phase, the winger couldn’t get his debut. He was involved in the 2025 Super Cup squad and has already made a bright mark with his performance against the Kerala Blasters, where he assisted Sahal Abdul Samad’s goal.

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Playing Style

The 23-year-old Kerala-born is naturally a winger who can play on either side of the pitch. However, he prefers to play on the right wing due to his incisiveness and desire to cut back in from the wide areas to cause havoc against opposition defenders.

Salahudheen thrives in carrying the ball forward and dribbling past players with ease, showcasing a lot of innovation and technique with his forward runs. He also boasts admirable close control in being able to manoeuvre the ball through tight spaces, as well able to pass the ball through difficult angles to cause trouble.

Salahudheen is also blessed with decent pace, which helps him to get past defenders with ease to move the ball into the danger areas.The 23-year-old is a fearless winger who loves to move the ball into key areas inside the box and get things done in the danger areas.

He also boasts impressive finishing qualities, being able to cleverly divert the ball into the danger areas to cause trouble to goalkeepers as well.

Future Potential

Salahudheen has a similar playing profile as someone like Lallianzuala Chhangte, being someone who can not only carry the ball forward but also be decisive enough in the final third. He excels in tricking defenders with his unpredictable movement and often sneaks into the key danger areas to get things done in the final third.

He has already proven himself as an efficient player in front of goal, knowing the kind of clever goals he’s scored at the reserves level. Now it’s upon the 23-year-old to maintain consistency with his performances to have a chance of permanently breaking into the senior Mohun Bagan squad.

Salahudheen needs to bring more maturity to his final third in terms of improving his decision-making a little bit and not always hurrying his decisions in key moments. He also has to work hard to build himself physically to sustain his own against aggressive defenders, and also keep himself clear from injuries too.

If the 23-year-old winger can maintain his growth and keep himself fit, he could become an important squad player for Mohun Bagan quickly.

Salahudheen’s innovative playing style and skillset makes him a unique winger in Indian football and that is why the sky is the limit for him. As long as he can be consistent with delivering decisive performances at the top level, he could even break into the Indian squad in the near future.

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