Indian football legend Renedy Singh is expected to join East Bengal as an assistant coach for the upcoming 2020-21 Indian Super League (ISL) season, Goal can confirm.
East Bengal have appointed Robbie Fowler as their new head coach, as Goal had earlier revealed.
Earlier on Sunday, ISL had officially confirmed the arrival of the Kolkata giants as the 11th team in the league. The Red and Golds join their arch-rivals, Mohun Bagan, now ATK Mohun Bagan FC after their merger with ATK, in the top tier of Indian football.
Renedy Singh started his football career at East Bengal back in 1996 after graduating from the Tata Football Academy (TFA). After spending four seasons, he had jumped ship to join their rivals, Mohun Bagan, in 2000. Renedy had returned to the Red and Golds for two more seasons in 2008.
Known for his ability from dead ball situations, Renedy went on to make 72 appearances for the Indian team. He was part of 2007 and 2009 Nehru Cup winning sides and also played an integral role in the AFC Challenge Cup triumph in 2008 which helped them book a berth in the 2011 Asian Cup.
His best performance in India colours came against Bahrain in the 5-2 defeat at the Asian Cup wherein he played a part in the twin goals scored by Bob Houghton’s side. His left-footed strike which came off the crossbar was certainly one of the highlights of the tournament for India.
Singh had earlier served as an assistant coach at now defunct FC Pune City in 2015 under head coach David Platt. He was also the manager of I-League side NEROCA FC for a brief period of time in 2019. He was the coach of Classic Football Academy in Manipur in what was his last stint as a coach.
Singh, who is a fan favourite in Kolkata, will be a welcome addition to the coaching team of the club ahead of the new ISL season.
