Playing position Name Gurjinder Kumar Career start 2010 Years Team Weight 76 kg | Height 1.78 m 2001–2007 Chandigarh FA Role Footballer | |
Date of birth (1990-10-10) 10 October 1990 (age 25) Profiles | ||
Gurjinder Kumar (Punjabi: ਗੁਰਜਿੰਦਰ ਕੁਮਾਰ; born 10 October 1990) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a Left back for Indian Super League club FC Pune City on loan from Salgaocar in the I-League. A right-footed player, he can also play as a midfielder and as a right back, which he played as during the 2013-14 Federation Cup.
Contents
- Early career
- Pune
- Salgaocar
- FC Pune City
- International
- Club career stats
- International stats
- Individual
- References
Early career
Born in Nawanshahr, Punjab, Gurjinder was born into a family of footballers. At the age of 10, after his older brother died, he started to take football seriously and joined the Chandigarh Football Academy. After spending seven years there Kumar moved to the famed Tata Football Academy where he joined the academy senior side.
Pune
In 2010, Gurjinder signed his first professional contract with Pune of the I-League. He scored his first professional goal during his first season at the club on 26 February 2011 against Viva Kerala in which his 11th-minute goal put Pune into an early 2–0 lead. The club eventually managed to get into a 4–0 lead but then gave up four goals to draw the match 4–4. After the 2010–11 season, he was named the Pune's best under-23 player at the clubs annual awards ceremony. Gurjinder was part of the team that played against the then Premier League side Blackburn Rovers on 7 October 2011, in a game that Blackburn won 3-0 He then scored his second career goal the next season against Viva Kerala again, in a match Pune managed to win 3–1. Kumar then went on to score his third goal of his career, and his second that season, only a month later on 21 December 2011 against Churchill Brothers in which his 84th-minute strike helped Pune finish the match 2–0 winners. His fourth goal of his career, and last for the season, came on 18 January 2012 against Mumbai in which he found the net in the 90th minute to finish a 3–0 victory for Pune. Then after the 2011–12 season, he was given the "Goal of the Year" award for his strike against Chirag United Kerala. He won the Ashok Piramal Group "Young Player of the Year" award for 2012–13 season.
Gurjinder did not score again until the 2013–14 season when his goal against Rangdajied United on 11 December 2013 to give Pune a 2–0 lead which they would eventually give up and lose 3–2.
Salgaocar
Gurjinder Kumar signed for Salgaocar for the 2014-15 I-League and made his debut in the 2014-15 Indian Federation Cup, scoring 3 times in the group stages.
FC Pune City
In July 2015 Kumar was drafted to play for FC Pune City in the 2015 Indian Super League.
International
In June 2011 Kumar made his international debut for India at the under-23 level against Qatar U23 side for the 2012 Olympic qualifiers. Then on 1 February 2012 Kumar was called up to the senior India side for a preparation camp for the upcoming 2012 AFC Challenge Cup. He then made his senior international debut for India on 27 February 2012 against Azerbaijan in a friendly in which he started and played the full 90 minutes as India lost 0–3.