Ahead of the clash against Iranian giant Persepolis FC in the AFC Champions League, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem addressed the media in the pre-match press conference alongside head-coach Juan Ferrando.
The 20-year old represented India at Under-17 FIFA World Cup in 2017. For 18 months before moving to FC Goa in the January transfer window, Dheeraj played just one match in Indian Super League for ATK Mohun Bagan. Before this, he was a regular starter for Kerala Blasters FC and Indian Arrows.
“World Cup was the big platform for me. It gained a lot of confidence in me. Now, AFC Champions League is more difficult because this is the elite league of Asia.
“I played in I-League and later one full season for Kerala Blasters. I moved to ATK Mohun Bagan and just played one game. As a player, it was a learning process for me. Luckily, the transfer happened in January and all I needed was the trust from the coach,” said Dheeraj Singh.
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The young goalkeeper stood tall against Al-Rayyan and Al-Wahda and bagged two consecutive clean sheets, due to which he has been praised for his saves and clearances in the goal.
“We are not only representing the club but the whole country. It’s my humble request to everyone, please don’t hype me up. I am very young and there are areas in which I need to improve. I want to focus on how best I can give to my team,” Dheeraj Singh insisted.
“Tomorrow, Persepolis is the strongest team in the group. We need to be fit mentally and physically. No matter what the result will be, we will play as a team, same as we did in earlier matches,” concluded Dheeraj Singh.
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