ISL 2017/18: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu signs five-year deal with Bengaluru FC
What's the story?
Bengaluru FC have extended their star goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh's contract by five years, after the club made it to this season's ISL final. They have thus decided to retain their goalkeeper who has had a great season.
In case you didn't know...
Indian international Gurpreet Singh joined Bengaluru FC on August last year. He was previously with East Bengal, Pailan Arrows and also played at Norwegian club Stabaek.
The heart of the matter
The Bengaluru keeper has had a stellar season with the Blues, shipping just 14 goals from 18 matches. Currently, Gurpreet has the highest minutes per goal conceded ratio of 111.86, which makes him the frontrunner in the race to land the Golden Glove award at the end of the season.
His heroics in goal have also helped his side finish top of the table, before they completed a 3-1 aggregate win over FC Pune City in the two-legged semi-final.
What's next?
Gurpreet has been nearly flawless in goal over the season, and will look to continue this form in the final at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, on March 17. That will be followed by the Super Cup main draw, where the Blues are set to face the winners of the qualifying match between NorthEast United FC and Gokulam Kerala.
Author's take
Gurpreet Singh was the most expensive player in ISL 4 and he justified his price-tag with great performances for BFC. The Blues have also extended the contract of defender Rahul Bheke recently.
Having had a great season, the Blues will be looking to retain their best players for long periods to bring some stability to their long-term objectives. One of the best goalkeepers in the country currently, Gurpreet will be keen to excel in the final before looking forward to starting his long stint with the Blues next season.