Bijoy Varghese (born 14 March 2000) is an Indian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

centre back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either ...

for

Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is an Indian professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Indian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Organised by the All India Football Federat ...

club

Kerala Blasters Kerala Blasters Football Club (), commonly referred to as The Blasters, is an Indian professional football club based in Kochi, Kerala, that competes in the Indian Super League, the top tier of football in India. The club was established i ...

Club career

Early life and youth career

Bijoy was born in

Pulluvila Pulluvila is a village between Kovalam and Poovar in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala state, India. It is hardly away from the proposed Vizhinjam Port. The main occupation of this village is fishing. More than 80% of the people are belon ...

, a coastal village located in the Thirivananthapuram district,

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

. Bijoy started playing football during his school days and was a member of his school football team. He initially played as a striker and later switched into central defensive position. At his 15, Bijoy joined

Kovalam Football Club Kovalam Football Club (often abbreviated as Kovalam FC) is an Indian professional football club based in Kovalam, neighbourhood of Thiruvananthapuram District, Kerala. They compete in the Kerala Premier League. History Kovalam Football Club ...

and played for their youth team. In 2018, he became part of the

team who reached in the finals of the International School Championship, where he won the best defender of the tournament award. After his performance for the Kerala team, Bijoy was selected into the Indian team for Asian school Championship. He was later selected into the SAI football team that participated in the youth league held at

Shillong Shillong () is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, a state in northeastern India, which means "The Abode of Clouds". It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the 330th most populous city in India with a ...

. Bijoy was included in the final squad of Kerala team for the

2019–20 Santosh Trophy The 2019–20 Santosh Trophy would have been the 74th edition of the Santosh Trophy, the premier competition in India for teams representing their regional and state football associations. It was cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic. Services ar ...

. However the tournament was cancelled due to

COVID-19 pandemic in India The COVID-19 pandemic in India is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). As of , according to Indian government figures, India has the second-highest n ...

Kerala Blasters

In 2021, he was signed by the

club

to his first ever professional contract and were put into their reserve side. After an impressive performance in the 2020–21 season of

Kerala Premier League Kerala Premier League is a state-level top football league organized by the Kerala Football Association and played in the state of Kerala, India. For sponsorship reasons it is officially known as the Scoreline Kerala Premier League. Structur ...

, Bijoy was promoted to the club's senior side in that year itself to participate in the 2021–22 ISL season. He made his debut for the Blasters against

Delhi FC Delhi Football Club is an Indian professional football club based in Delhi. Founded in 1994, the club competes in both I-League and Delhi Premier League. The club will compete in 2023–24 I-League, the second tier of Indian football, follow ...

in the 2021 Durand Cup match on 21 September 2021. which they lost 1–0 at full-time. Bijoy made his Indian Super League debut on 19 November 2021 against

ATK Mohun Bagan FC ATK Mohun Bagan FC () is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club competes in Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club, which was formed as a merger between the football section of m ...

, which they lost 4–2. On 21 April 2022, the Blasters announced that they have extended the contract of Bijoy until 2025. He was given a new jersey number 21, which the club had retired after

Sandesh Jhingan Sandesh Jhingan (born 21 July 1993) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a defender for the Indian Super League club Bengaluru and the Indian national team. He won the AIFF emerging player of the year award in 2014 and made ...

's departure in 2020.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Kerala Blasters *

runner up: 2021–22.

References

External links

*
Bijoy Varghese
at WorldFootball
Bijoy Varghese
at Indian Super League {{DEFAULTSORT:Varghese, Bijoy 2000 births Living people Association football defenders Indian footballers Footballers from Kerala I-League 2nd Division players Kerala Blasters FC Reserves and Academy players Indian Super League players Kerala Blasters FC players