Sandesh Jhingan has penned a five-year deal with ATK Mohun Bagan. The centre-back left Kerala Blasters this summer after six seasons and has joined defending Indian Super League (ISL) champions ATK MB ahead of the upcoming 2020-21 ISL season. Jhingan’s addition further bolsters the ATK defence which had already had a number of Indian stalwarts in Pritam Kotal, Prabir Das, Sumit Rathi and Subhasish Bose. Jhingan had been in discussion with ATK and several other top Indians clubs for a move after terminating his contract with Kerala Blasters.

Jhingan had been part of Kerala Blasters since 2014 when the ISL was launched and also captained the club for the last four seasons. Jhigan played 78 matches for the Kochi-based club across all competitions. He still had two years remaining in his contract with the Blasters but Jhingan and the club decided to mutually terminate the contract with the 27-year-old looking to play abroad.

Sandesh Jhingna Joins ATK Mohun Bagan

He joins ATK Mohun Bagan on a five-year deal reportedly worth Rs 6 crore and will be part of the club for ISL 2020-21 season. Mohun Bagan were involved in a four-club battle, which included Bengaluru FC, East Bengal and FC Goa, for the 27-year-old centre-back before eventually reaching an agreement with the player.

Sandesh Jhingan Pens 5-Year Deal With ATK Mohun Bagan

Reports have stated that Jhingan and his representatives have inserted a special clause in the five-year contract which allows Jhingan to leave whenever he receives an opportunity from abroad. Jhingan is eager to play in Europe and had terminated his contract with the Blasters for the same reason. But the COVD-19 pandemic closed doors on any possible move to a foreign club this season and forced him to remain in India.

He was on the lookout for the right opportunity with several clubs interested and opted to sign for ATK Mohun Bagan. The Kolkata-based club are said to have been the only club to have agreed to have insert the clause that allows Jhingan to terminate his contract whenever he seeks an opportunity abroad.

He is expected to pair with Tiri at the heart of ATK's defence in ISL 2020-21. Tiri, a former ISL champion with ATK, re-joined the club from Jamshedpur FC this summer. The addition of Jhingan also adds the number of high profile Indian players at the club and gives coach Antonio Habas the build his team around these stars. The presence of a strong Indian contingent will also come handy especially with the number of foreign players set to be limited to four from next season.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 26, 2020 03:04 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).