Ishan Pandita

Indian footballer (born 1998)

Ishan PanditaPersonal information

Full name|  Ishan Pandita
Date of birth|  (1998-05-26) 26 May 1998 (age 25)
Place of birth|  New Delhi, India
Height|  1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s)|  Striker
Team information

Current team

|  Kerala Blasters
Number|  26
Youth career
2014–2015|  Alcobendas
2015–2016|  Almería
2016–2019|  Leganés
2019|  Gimnàstic
Senior career*
Years|  Team|  Apps|  (Gls)
2019|  Pobla Mafumet|  1|  (0)
2019–2020|  Lorca|  23|  (4)
2020–2021|  Goa|  11|  (4)
2021–2023|  Jamshedpur|  34|  (5)
2023–|  Kerala Blasters|  10|  (0)
International career‡
2021–|  India|  8|  (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:30, 21 February 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17:30, 21 February 20244 (UTC)

Ishan Pandita (born 26 May 1998) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters and the India national team.

## Club career[edit]

### Early and youth career[edit]

Pandita moved to the Philippines, where he attended British school in Manila and took football training.[2] He returned to Bengaluru at the age of eleven, and then appeared with Student Unions and Bangalore Yellows.[2] He soon gained recognition in BDCA Division A and C state soccer leagues.[2] IF Brommapojkarna spotted Pandita and included in their U17 side after his brilliant performance at the 2013 Gothia Cup in Sweden.[2]

Pandita moved to Spain in 2014 at the age of 16 and joined Alcobendas Juvenil.[3] In 2015, he joined the Under-18 team of La Liga club Almería but he did not sign a professional contract as he had not turned 18 that time.[4] In the 2016, he joined the U-19 team of Leganés.[5] He was the first ever Indian footballer to play for a Juvenil side of a Spanish top division club.[6][7] After a spell at Leganes, he signed a short-term contract with the U-23 team of Gimnàstic on 5 January 2019.[2]

### Pobla Mafumet[edit]

Ishan signed his first senior contract for the farm club of Gimnàstic, Pobla Mafumet in early 2019.[8] He played only one match for the club throughout his debut season and left the club.[9]

### Lorca[edit]

In August 2019, he signed a one-year deal with Tercera Division Club Lorca.[10] He played 26 matches and scored 6 goals and was the top scorer for the club in the 2019–20 season.[11]

### Goa[edit]

Initially he and his family wanted to stay in Spain, but due to the COVID-19 situation it was difficult to find a club for him.[12] In early 2020, rumours spread about Pandita's return to India and it was speculated that he might sign for Goa.[13][14] In October 2020, the club revealed that it had secured Pandita in their squad.[15][16] He made his debut for FC Goa on 30 November 2020 against NorthEast United at 89th minute of that match as a substitute.[17][18] He scored his debut goal for FC Goa against Hyderabad on 30 December 2020. He came as a substitute on 86th minute and scored with his first touch on the 87th minute as FC Goa equalised the game.[19]

He has also represented FC Goa at the 2021 AFC Champions League, in which they achieved third place in group stages.[20]

### Jamshedpur[edit]

On 2 September 2021, it was announced that Pandita was signed by Jamshedpur on a two-year deal for a fee reported around ₹6 Million, ahead of the 2021–22 Indian Super League season.[21] He scored his first goal for the club in their 3–2 win against NorthEast United on 6 January 2022.

### Kerala Blasters[edit]

On 10 August 2023, Kerala Blasters announced the signing of Pandita on a two-year deal with an option to extend for one more year.[22] He made his debut for the club on 18 August, by coming as a substitute in the 60th minute in a match against Bengaluru FC reserves during the 2023 Durand Cup.[23] On 21 October, Pandita made his debut for the club in the Indian Super League against NorthEast United FC at home, by coming as a substitute in the 78th minute which ended in 1–1 draw.[24]

## International career[edit]

Pandita's performances in his debut season in the ISL were noticed, and subsequently he earned a call-up to the India national team in March 2021, ahead of India's friendlies against Oman and UAE.[25] On 25 March, he made his debut in 1–1 draw against Oman. Ishan scored for India during a practice game against I-League All-Stars on 18 May 2022 in Kolkata.[26] He scored his first international goal on 14 June against Hong Kong in their 4–0 win at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification.

In September, he participated at the 2022 VFF Tri-Nations Series in Vietnam, where India finished as runners-up. He appeared in India's second match in group stage, against Uzbekistan at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup on 18 January 2024, in their 3–0 defeat.

## Personal life[edit]

Ishan Pandita was born on 26 May, 1998 in Delhi to a family originating in Tral, Kashmir.[27][28] He then moved to Bengaluru,[29] but stayed there not longer and moved to Spain as he desired to play better football there.[30] After spending a term of six years in various lower division Spanish clubs, he returned to India and signed for Goa.[31][13]

## Career statistics[edit]

### Club[edit]

As of 21 February 20244[32]
Club  | Season  | League  | Cup  | AFC | Total

|
|
|
|
|

Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals
Pobla Mafumet | 2018–19 | Tercera División | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 | 0
Lorca | 2019–20 | 23 | 4 | 2 | 1 | – | 25 | 5
Goa | 2020–21 | Indian Super League | 11 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 6[a] | 0 | 17 | 4
Jamshedpur | 2021–22 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | 17 | 3
2022–23 | 17 | 2 | 2[b] | 1 | 1[c] | 0 | 20 | 3
Jamshedpur total  | 34 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 6
Kerala Blasters | 2023–24 | Indian Super League | 10 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0
Career total  | 79 | 13 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 92 | 15

1. ^ Appearance(s) in AFC Champions League
2. ^ a b Appearance(s) in Super Cup
3. ^ Appearance(s) in play-offs for AFC Champions League

### International[edit]

As of 21 February 20244[33]
National team | Year | Apps | Goals

|
|
|

India | 2021 | 2 | 0
2022 | 4 | 1
2023 | 1 | 0
2024 | 1 | 0
Total | 8 | 1

#### International goals[edit]

Scores and results list India's goal tally first
No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1. | 14 June 2022 | Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata, India | 4 |  Hong Kong | 4–0 | 4–0 | 2023 AFC Asian Cup qualification | [34]

## Honours[edit]

Jamshedpur

* Indian Super League Shield: 2021–22[35][36]

## See also[edit]

* List of Indian expatriate footballers

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Ishan Pandita profile". Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
2. ^ a b c d e "Indian football Striker Ishan Pandita and his connection with Kashmir". groundreport.in. 18 June 2022. Archived from the original on 4 July 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
3. ^ "18-Year-Old Bengaluru Boy Becomes First Indian to Sign a Contract with Spanish Football League". The Better India. 6 October 2016. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
4. ^ Maxin Mathew (5 October 2016). "Ishan Pandita: Ishan becomes first Indian to sign for Spanish La Liga club | Football News – Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
5. ^ "Five things you must know about new FC Goa signing Ishan Pandita". Khelnow. 13 October 2020. Archived from the original on 21 July 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
6. ^ "ISL: Who is Ishan Pandita, FC Goa's exciting new recruit?". The Week. 9 October 2020. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
7. ^ "FC Goa Players | Squad List & Player Bios". fcgoa.in. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
8. ^ Kundu, Abhishek (14 January 2019). "India's Ishan Pandita joins La Liga II club Gimnastic de Tarragona from CD Leganes". www.sportskeeda.com. Archived from the original on 13 November 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
9. ^ "Ishan Pandita - Profile and Player Statistics - SoccerPunter". www.soccerpunter.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
10. ^ Dey, Soumyadwip (5 April 2022). "Former India U-17 star Aniket Bharti signs for Orsomarso SC". sportskeeda.com. Sportskeeda. Archived from the original on 5 July 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
11. ^ "Ishan Pandita creates history; becomes first Indian footballer to sign La Liga contract". Firstpost. 5 October 2016. Archived from the original on 13 November 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
12. ^ "FC Goa's Ishan Pandita: I'm ready to compete with anyone | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2020. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
13. ^ a b Marcus Mergulhao (29 September 2020). "Another 'Spanish' addition for FC Goa as Ishan Pandita completes move | Goa News – Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
14. ^ "ISL: FC Goa sign forward Ishan Pandita for 2020–21 season | Football News – Times of India". The Times of India. PTI. 3 October 2020. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
15. ^ "FC Goa secures Ishan Pandita signing". fcgoa.in. Archived from the original on 13 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
16. ^ "FC Goa secures Ishan Pandita signing". Indian Super League. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
17. ^ "New kid Ishan Pandita ready to show Goa, ISL what the fuss is all about". ESPN. 8 October 2020. Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
18. ^ "Goa vs. NorthEast United – 30 November 2020 – Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
19. ^ "ISL 2020–21 HIGHLIGHTS, Hyderabad FC vs FC Goa: Late Angulo, Pandita Goals Hand Goa 2–1 win Against Hyderabad". News18. 30 December 2020. Archived from the original on 31 December 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
20. ^ "FC Goa announce squad for AFC Champions League: Ishan Pandita, Saviour Gama in as Igor Angulo misses out". The New Indian Express. 8 April 2021. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 2 August 2021.
21. ^ Sportstar, Team (2 September 2021). "ISL 2021-22: Jamshedpur FC signs Ishan Pandita from FC Goa". Sportstar. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
22. ^ "Ishan Pandita signs two-year deal with Kerala Blasters". Sportstar. 10 August 2023. Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
23. ^ "Bengaluru FC 2-2 Kerala Blasters Highlights: 10-man KBFC draws Souther derby, gets eliminated from Durand Cup". Sportstar. 18 August 2023. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
24. ^ Sportstar, Team (21 October 2023). "Kerala Blasters vs NorthEast United FC highlights, KBFC 1-1 NEUFC, ISL 2023-24: Nestor, Danish on the scoresheet as both teams share spoils". Sportstar. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
25. ^ "Indian Football: Bipin Singh, Ishan Pandita in 35-man probables list for Oman, UAE friendlies". Scroll. 2 March 2021. Archived from the original on 21 November 2021. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
26. ^ "Indian Football team comfortably defeats I-League XI". footballmonk.com. Football Monk. 18 May 2022. Archived from the original on 17 April 2023. Retrieved 17 April 2023.
27. ^ "FC Goa signs forward Ishan Pandita". The New Indian Express. 3 October 2020. Archived from the original on 6 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
28. ^ "From Kashmir to Madrid: The Story of Ishan Pandita". Kashmir Life. 14 January 2018. Archived from the original on 7 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
29. ^ "Delhi-born, Manila-bred, Madrid trained: Ishan Pandita tipped to be the future of Indian football". The Indian Express. 11 October 2020. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
30. ^ "ISL: FC Goa Announce Signing of 22-year-old Forward Ishan Pandita". News18. 3 October 2020. Archived from the original on 3 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
31. ^ "ISL: FC Goa sign forward Ishan Pandita for 2020–21 season | Football News – Times of India". The Times of India. PTI. 3 October 2020. Archived from the original on 14 June 2022. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
32. ^ Ishan Pandita at Soccerway
33. ^ "Ishan Pandita". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
34. ^ "India 4–0 Hong Kong". int.Soccerway.com. 14 June 2022. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2023.
35. ^ "Jamshedpur FC clinch League Winners' Shield after beating ATK Mohun Bagan". Indian Super League. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
36. ^ "ISL 2021-22: Jamshedpur win the League Winners Shield | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.

## External links[edit]

* Biography portal
* India portal
* Association football portal

* Ishan Pandita on Twitter
* Ishan Pandita at FootballDatabase.eu
* Ishan Pandita at Global Sports Archive
* Ishan Pandita at Indian Super League

* v
* t
* e

Jamshedpur FC - current squad

* 1 Pawan
* 2 Thangjam
* 3 Jitendra
* 4 Laldinpuia
* 5 Gahlot
* 6 Lallawmawma
* 7 Doungel
* 8 Halder
* 10 Murray
* 11 Thatal
* 13 Sabiá
* 14 Lima
* 15 Rahman
* 17 Choudhary
* 18 Das
* 19 Mandi
* 24 Stewart
* 26 Renthlei
* 27 Amin
* 29 Hartley (c)
* 30 Anas
* 31 Yadav
* 32 Rehenesh
* 45 Pandita
* 46 Marndi
* 47 Dhami
* 99 Chima
* Head Coach: Cooper

* v
* t
* e

India squad – 2023 AFC Asian Cup

* 1 Gurpreet
* 2 Bheke
* 3 Bose
* 4 Lalchungnunga
* 5 Jhingan
* 6 Mishra
* 7 Thapa
* 8 Suresh
* 9 Manvir
* 10 Fernandes
* 11 Chhetri (c)
* 12 Colaco
* 13 Kaith
* 14 Naorem
* 15 Udanta
* 16 Rahul
* 17 Chhangte
* 18 Abdul Samad
* 19 Ralte
* 20 Kotal
* 21 Poojary
* 22 Mehtab
* 23 Amrinder
* 24 Vikram
* 25 Tangri
* 26 Pandita
* Coach: Štimac

*[Apps]: League appearances
*[Gls]: League goals
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template