FC Goa set to sign Anwar Ali in 18 months loan deal from Delhi FC

A member of India's FIFA U-17 World Cup squad, the youngster recently won the Golden Boot at I-League Qualifiers 2021.

Indian Super League (ISL) outfit FC Goa are close to completing the signing of defender Anwar Ali, Khel Now can confirm. The Delhi FC youngster will join the Gaurs in January 2022, after putting pen to paper on an 18 months loan deal from his parent club.

"Anwar Ali will join FC Goa. However, he will have to wait till January 2022 to move, as the transfer window is currently shut. Delhi FC and the Gaurs have agreed terms on an 18-month loan deal. He will hence remain with Juan Ferrando and co till the end of the 2022-23 season," sources close to the developments informed Khel Now.

We also understand that FC Goa will have the first chance to match the best bid from any other club who are looking to sign the 21-year-old, following the end of his stint with them.

About the player

Ali's earliest claim to fame took place in 2017, when he earned a call-up to India's squad for the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The defender became one of the first Indians to represent the country in one of the sport's biggest stages. He had been a regular with the national U-17 side since 2015, and later also played for the U-20 and U-23 teams.

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Hailing from Punjab, the youngster is a graduate of the Minerva Academy. He later played his first senior professional game at the national level for Minerva Punjab. A short stint at Indian Arrows followed before Mumbai City came calling in 2018. The Islanders sent him to the Arrows once again on loan before he returned to Mumbai the following year.

Afterwards, things started going downhill unexpectedly for Anwar Ali. He became sidelined from professional football due to a heart problem. A medical examination revealed that he suffered from Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM), which could be worsened by physical exertion and warm climates. More medical reports, along with suggestions from French experts, resulted in Mumbai City terminating his contract. They concluded that he couldn't continue playing professional football without the risk of a heart failure.

In 2020, Ali signed with Mohammedan SC, only for the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to intervene and rule that he should completely stop playing. The defender challenged this decision in the Delhi High Court, who supported him. The Court said that until the AIFF came to a binding decision on him, they couldn’t stop him from playing professionally.

Since then, Anwar Ali featured for Delhi FC in the Durand Cup, I-League Qualifiers and Football Delhi Senior Division League among other competitions. In August 2021, the AIFF approved his return, provided he can submit an affidavit taking full responsibility for his own health, as well as details on the medical precautions that he and his prospective club will take.

This, in turn, increased his hopes of returning to the ISL after a failed launch at Mumbai City. However, with the transfer window shut, he will have to wait until January 2022 for a move to materialise.

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Once hailed as one of the most exciting prospects to emerge from Indian football, the 21-year-old could become the ideal signing that FC Goa had been wanting for a long time. His height and free-kick-taking ability make him a real asset to the side, who have been keen to sign an Indian defender for a while.

Recently, Anwar Ali also won the Golden Boot at the I-League Qualifiers, despite being a centre-back. Most of his goals came from free-kicks.

FC Goa's pre-season preparations

Juan Ferrando's side won the Durand Cup for the first time in their history in 2021, providing the players a much-needed boost ahead of the upcoming 2021-22 edition of the ISL. As of now, the Gaurs' ISL squad is training at their facilities in Goa ahead of the next season. The details will be announced soon.

Airam Cabrera, Edu Bedia, Jorge Ortiz Mendoza, Alberto Noguera, Ivan Garrido Gonzalez and Dylan Fox form the club's foreign contingent, while stars like Brandon Fernandes, Dheeraj Singh, Seriton Fernandes and so on are part of their Indian core.

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