Nikhil Poojary signs new three-year contract at Hyderabad FC

The 24-year-old clocked a total of 1555 minutes on the pitch last season, more than any of his teammates.

Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) side Hyderabad FC have strengthened their squad ahead of the upcoming season by handing versatile India international Nikhil Poojary a three-year extension. The new deal will keep Poojary at the club till the end of the 2022-23 season, the club announced on Monday.

Twenty-four-year-old Poojary was an ever-present figure for the club last season and was the only player to have played in all 18 games for the Hero ISL debutants. In fact, the Mumbai native, who can operate both as a winger and a full back, clocked 1555 minutes on the pitch - the most by any Hyderabad FC player in Hero ISL 2019-20.

“I’m very excited about the future with Hyderabad FC. We have been working with a new philosophy in the latter part of the season and with Albert Roca joining in, it will help all of us immensely. I feel settled here, and signing a three-year extension means I can focus on helping the team as much as I can. The fans have been very kind towards me and their support last season was crucial. I’m eager to get back to training,” said Poojary after completing formalities.

Having made his debut for the Indian national team in 2017, Poojary has featured eight times for the senior team. His most recent cap for the national team came in the historic goalless draw in Qatar where he started the game for the Blue Tigers. He was also one of three Hyderabad players to be named in the National team camp which was to be held in March but was later postponed.

Albert Roca, Hyderabad FC head coach, said, “I know Nikhil and have interacted with him in the past and he is a great professional. He is the one who played the most minutes for the team last season and that just shows how useful he is for us. Nikhil is young and hungry to develop further, so we are very happy to have a good and versatile player like him on board for the long term.”

Nikhil Poojary joins Adil Khan, Mohammad Yasir and Asish Rai who have also extended their stay with Hyderabad FC.