Kolkata: Defender Raju Gaikwad committed his stay at SC East Bengal for another year after putting pen to paper on Friday. Gaikwad returned to Red and Golds in the January transfer window and played in seven games for SC East Bengal in the previous edition of the Indian Super League.
With the 30-year-old already finalised before the start of the upcoming ISL, SC East Bengal will be better prepared with their defence, which had cost them majorly in the last season. The Red and Golds have been in a tussle with the investors Shree Cements over the handover of the sporting rights.
However, the intervention of West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee cleared all the clouds. Soon after, SC East Bengal started rebuilding the squad and have already acquired the services of Amarjit Singh Kiyam (FC Goa) and Adil Khan (Hyderabad FC) on a season-long loan.
Besides the two, SC East Bengal have also signed Subho Ghosh, Jackiechand Singh, Hira Mondal and Romeo Fernandez. Gaikwad, who has played for then East Bengal in the I-League from 2011 to 2015, boasts a huge experience and would bring confidence in the backline.
Known for his long throws, Gaikwad has also played for FC Goa, Jamshedpur FC, Mumbai City FC in the ISL and is one of the most experienced persons in the squad. Owing to his experience, he can be named one of the captains of the team. However, the club is yet to decide on the foreign recruits.
