ISL: Bengaluru FC sign Brazilian striker Cleiton Silva
Bengaluru FC have signed Brazilian striker Cleiton Silva on a one-year deal with an option to extend for an additional year. He becomes the latest addition to the Blues squad after the club lured in the likes of Lalthuammawia Ralte and Joe Zoherliana.
The 33-year-old previously played for Thailand outfit Suphanburi FC, where he scored 11 goals in 30 outings. He became the first foreign player to reach the 100-goal mark in Thailand and is currently the all-time leading scorer in the Thai League 1 with 139 goals.
Cleiton SIlva kicked off his professional career with Brazilian side Madureira. However, his stint at the club was far from successful and he was soon looking for a move away from the club. He moved to Thailand in 2010 and began playing for Osotsapa, for whom he scored 17 goals in 38 matches.
His most successful years, however, came at Muangthong, where he tallied 57 goals in 79 appearances and won three major trophies. He joined Suphanburi in 2018 after stints at clubs like Chiangrai United and will now ply his trade for Bengaluru FC.
Cleiton Silva, who was in talks with the Blues last season before the deal collapsed, admitted that he is happy that the move has finally materialised. In an official statement, he said:
“I’ve signed with Bengaluru FC because I want to be a champion and this is a club that is always after titles. I have that opportunity once again at BFC. I want to make the club and its fans happy. I have been following the club for some time now, because we were in talks a while ago. And I liked what I saw. I am looking forward to making my way to Bengaluru and am excited to meet my new teammates, the fans and embrace the city.”
Carles Cuadrat is 'looking forward' to working with Cleiton Silva
Bengaluru FC head coach Carles Cuadrat believes that the club has done well in terms of securing a proven goalscorer. He said:
“Cleiton has a proven track-record when it comes to scoring and this is an area we needed to strengthen on the squad. The goals aside, he even has an eye for a quality final pass and we’re looking forward to working with him.”
Cleiton Silva will now join the likes of Juanan Gonzalez, Dimas Delgado and Erik Paartalu in Bengaluru’s unit of foreign players.