Indian Football Transfers: Tiri confirms he's staying at Jamshedpur FC
Jamshedpur FC's star defender and captain Tiri (José Luis Espinosa Arroyo) has confirmed that he's staying with the Jharkhand-based club for one more season.
There was speculation that Tiri, who has been part of the Indian Super League (ISL) since 2015, might leave Jamshedpur for greener pastures. However, the Spaniard has put to rest these rumours and confirmed that he will be staying at Jamshedpur FC for another year.
"After many rumours of my depature to other clubs, I want to say that I have one more year of contract (left) with Jamshedpur FC and I stay until the end of the season," Tiri said in an Instagram post
Tiri joined Jamshedpur in 2017 after two seasons with ATK. He has been a vital part of the Jamshedpur squad since its inception and hopes to get his hands on the ISL trophy again, after winning it with ATK in 2016.
The Spaniard, 27, is a fan favourite at the JRD Tata Sports Complex, Jamshedpur's home ground and has been an influential figure in the team's solid defence. Jamshedpur conceded 21 goals in 18 games this season with Cesar Ferrando at the helm and had the second-best defensive record last season under Steve Coppell.
Tiri played all of Jamshedpur's 18 games this season with one goal, making 42 tackles, 33 interceptions, 164 clearances and 27 blocks. Even in the 2017-18 season, he played all 18 games for JFC, scoring once and enjoying an impressive record of 37 tackles, 30 interceptions, 119 clearances and 15 blocks.
After failing to make the playoffs for the second season and crashing out of the Super Cup in the Round of 16, JFC have quickly acted to secure the services of their best players. Their defensive midfielder Memo was the first to sign an extension but their star midfielders Mario Arques and Sergio Cidoncha could leave the club.
Jamshedpur also sold 22-year-old Jerry Mawihmingthanga to Delhi Dynamos and recently roped in Keegan Pereira from NorthEast United to spruce up their defence. A big blow for them would be the departure of winger Michael Soosairaj with ATK reportedly triggering the release clause of the Tamil Nadu native to acquire his services. JFC also have to look for a centre-forward as Socceroos legend Tim Cahill called it quits last month.