Suhail Ahmad Bhat (born 8 April 2005) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Indian Super League club Mohun Bagan.[2]

Suhail Bhat
Personal information
Full name Suhail Ahmad Bhat[1]
Date of birth (2005-04-08) 8 April 2005 (age 19)
Place of birth Jammu and Kashmir, India
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
Mohun Bagan
Number 72
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022 Indian Arrows 7 (0)
2023– Mohun Bagan B 16 (17)
2023– Mohun Bagan 6 (0)
International career
2021 India U16 1 (1)
2023– India U23 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:30, 27 December 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 December 2023

Club career

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In 2017, Bhat was selected from a football camp in Srinagar to join the Sports Council Football Academy.[3]

Indian Arrows

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On 30 January 2022, He joined Indian Arrows during the 2021-22 I-League. He made his professional debut in the second match of the relegation stage coming on as a 70 minute substitute in a 1-0 win over Sudeva Delhi.[4] He made seven appearances but scored no goals as Arrows finished tenth. In September 2022, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2005 worldwide.[5]

Mohun Bagan

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2022-23: Youth Team

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Following the disbanding of the Indian Arrows, he was left without a club.[6] However, on 1 January 2023, he joined Mohun Bagan.[7] He played for the U21 team in the 2023 Reliance Foundation Development League.[8] He played in fifteen matches and scored eight goals with a hatrick against Mohammedan SC as the Mariners finished third in the tournament.[9] He was also selected to play in the Next Gen Cup where he played in all matches and scored a goal against West Ham U21 with Mariners finishing sixth.[10] He remained with the youth and reserve team for most of the season unable to break in the first team.

2023–24: First team breakthrough

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He scored his debut goal for the first team of Mohun Bagan in their 5–0 win over Bangladesh Army at the 2023 Durand Cup group stage.

International career

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Bhat was first called up for the India national under-16 football team in 2021,[11] scoring on his debut against the United Arab Emirates.[3]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of 8 February 2023.[12]
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Indian Arrows 2021–22 I-League 7 0 0 0 0 0 7 0
Mohun Bagan B 2022–23 RFDL 11 7 4[a] 1 15 8
Mohun Bagan 2023–24 Indian Super League 6 0 6[b] 1 2 0 10[c] 8 24 9
Career total 24 7 10 2 2 0 10 8 46 17

Notes

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  1. ^ Appearance(s) in Next Gen Cup
  2. ^ 3 Appearances in Durand Cup and 3 Appearances in Indian Super Cup
  3. ^ Appearance(s) in Calcutta League

References

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  1. ^ Suhail Bhat at WorldFootball.net
  2. ^ "Suhail Ahmad Bhat - Indian Super League".
  3. ^ a b Mukherjee, Soham (27 January 2021). "Chronicling Suhail Bhat — The prodigy from Kashmir who made his mark in UAE". goal.com. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  4. ^ "Indian Arrows beat Sudeva Delhi 1-0, register first win of I-League season". 4 March 2022.
  5. ^ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (28 September 2022). "Next Generation 2022: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  6. ^ Hussain, Irshad (8 October 2022). "Guardian wonder kid, last Indian Arrow: Can Suhail Bhat take ISL by storm?". thebridge.in. Archived from the original on 24 December 2022. Retrieved 24 December 2022.
  7. ^ "Mohun Bagan's youth signings". thebridge.in. 1 January 2023. Archived from the original on 6 January 2023. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  8. ^ "Mohun Bagan name their Reliance Foundation Development League squad!". 12 March 2023.
  9. ^ "Mohun Bagan continue winning run in RFDL National Championships". 30 April 2023.
  10. ^ "Next Gen Cup: Mohun Bagan, West Ham United FC play out 1-1 draw". 17 May 2023.
  11. ^ "Friendly Match — India 4–2 UAE U18 :: 2021-01-26 (17:10:00); Al Riqa Suburb — Sharjah, UAE". the-aiff.com. New Delhi: All India Football Federation. 26 January 2021. Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
  12. ^ Suhail Bhat at Soccerway
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