Who is NorthEast United's new signing Patrick Flottmann?

The defender from Down Under became the Highlanders' sixth foreign signing of the season.

Indian Super League (ISL) outfit NorthEast United have acquired the services of Australian defender Patrick Flottmann, as reported earlier by Khel Now. Flottmann becomes the Highlanders’ sixth foreign signing and completes their overseas contingent ahead of the ISL 2021-22 season.

Flottmann joins the likes of Federico Gallego, Khassa Camara, Mathias Coureur, Hernan Santana and Deshorn Brown in NorthEast’s foreign squadron. Khalid Jamil will lead them in the 2021-22 season as head coach, with a plan to replicate things from last season.

At 24 years of age, he is young and has played majority of his football in Australia. He replaces fellow Aussie Dylan Fox in the Highlanders' setup.

Prior Experience

Patrick Flottmann started his youth career with Blacktown City and Sydney FC’s youth side Sydney FC NPL. He rose through the ranks and eventually earned promotion to their first-team, but couldn’t get any game-time with them.

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The defender then backed himself and moved abroad to try his mettle. He moved to Thailand and put pen to paper with Thai League 2 outfit Air Force United in 2018. After 19 months of regular football and a tough relegation fight, he returned to his home country.

The Aussie’s move to Thailand proved beneficial for the centre-back, as Sydney FC rewarded him with his first A-league contract in 2019. The Sky Blues signed him on a two-year deal until the summer of 2021.

He played three games in the A-League and three in Asia’s premier club competition, the AFC Champions League. After a loan spell with Brisbane Roar, Flottmann now moves to NorthEast United to experience Indian football.

Last season

After failing to get enough minutes at Sydney, Patrick Flottmann moved to fellow A-league side Brisbane Roar on a loan deal in April 2021. He played five games for them in the remainder of the A-league 2020-21 season, as they finished eighth on the table.

Type of Player

Patrick Flottmann is a young and talented defender, but lacks experience and game-time under his belt. He is a right-footed centre-back, who mostly operates on the left side of the central defence. The 24-year-old is a multi-faceted player and can also play the role of a holding midfielder.

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He is a fair and square ball-playing defender. Standing at 6’3, the Aussie will have an indispensable role in set-pieces. He is quite reliable in both aerial and ground duels, which makes him a worthy addition to NorthEast United’s squad.

How player fits in head coach’s plans

Head coach Khalid Jamil is a huge admirer of young players and this move to NEUFC could very well be a defining moment in Patrick Flottmann’s career. Jamil has brought the best out of countless players and will be looking to execute the same with the Australian centre-back.

Jamil eagerly wanted a bona-fide ball-playing left centre-back and Flottmann has emerged to be his man. The 44-year-old prefers a free-flowing attack with a rigid backline and the 24-year-old could start alongside Hernan Santana or an Indian centre-back in defence.

Flottmann’s passing precision and physical presence could give him an edge over Santana. But, since the Spaniard is a tried and tested player, Khalid might start with him, while giving Flottmann minutes off the bench.

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