Danish Farooq Bhat (born 9 May 1996) 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 le ...

who plays as a midfielder for Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters and the India national team.

Club career

Early career

Danish started his early football career with a local team Chinar Valley FC. Later, Danish joined the J&K Bank Football Academy at the age of 13, where he would become the team captain eventually at his age group level teams. He would go on to win 12 local leagues and tournaments with his team prior to joining Lonestar Kashmir in 2015. He would play for Lonestar Kashmir in the 2015–16 I-League 2nd Division season, where he would help his team reach the final round of the league as his team fell short of promotion to the I-League.

Real Kashmir

In the later half of 2016, he joined Real Kashmir where he was given the number 10 shirt. With 4 strikes, Danish was the joint highest goal-scorer for Real Kashmir in the 2017–18 season. He had the most number of assists to his name during this season as his team became the champions of

2017–18 I-League 2nd Division The 2017–18 I-League 2nd Division (known as Hero 2017–18 I-League 2nd Division, for sponsorship reasons) was the 11th season of the I-League 2nd Division, the second division Indian football league, since its establishment in 2008. The sea ...

and won promotion to the I-League. He is one among two

Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...

-born players for Real Kashmir in the first-team squad who have played regularly in this season of I-League.

Bengaluru

On 25 July 2021, it was announced that Danish had joined Indian Super League club

Bengaluru Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

on a two-year deal. On August 15, he made his debut in a 1–0 2021 AFC Cup play-off round win against Maldivian club

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

. On 24 November, he made his ISL debut as a substitute for

Jayesh Rane Jayesh Dilip Rane (born 20 February 1993) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Bengaluru in the Indian Super League. Career Mumbai Born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Rane joined the Mumbai youth team in 2008. During the ...

in a 3–1 loss against Odisha. Danish scored his first ever ISL goal in a 3–3 draw against

ATK Mohun Bagan 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 ...

on 16 December.

Kerala Blasters

On 31 January 2023, Danish joined Indian Super League club Kerala Blasters on a three and a half-year deal for a reported fee of ₹2.5 million. He made his debut for the Blasters on 3 November in a 1–0 loss against East Bengal by coming as a substitute for Jeakson Singh in the 75th minute.

International career

In March 2022, Danish was called up for the national squad by coach Igor Štimac ahead of India's two friendly matches against Bahrain and Belarus. He made his debut on 23 March against Bahrain in their 2–1 defeat.

Playing style

Danish earned the moniker of ‘

Ronaldo Ronaldo is a Portuguese given name equivalent to the English Ronald. It became a common name in all Portuguese-speaking countries, being also prevalent in Italy and Spanish-speaking countries. People Notable people known as Ronaldo include: As ...

' by fellow footballers and aficionados of the state, demonstrated by his dribbling skills and goal-scoring.

Personal life

Danish was born in the

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

neighbourhood of

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

in the

Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

. Danish was inspired by his father, Farooq Ahmad, who was a professional footballer two decades before him. Ahmad represented the Jammu and Kashmir state team in Santosh Trophy and also played for Kolkata giant Mohammedan Sporting.

Career statistics

Club

;Notes

Honours

Real Kashmir * I-League 2nd Division (1): 2017–18 * IFA Shield:

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

Bengaluru * Durand Cup:

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Danish, Farooq 1996 births Living people Indian people of Kashmiri descent I-League players Association football midfielders Footballers from Jammu and Kashmir Indian footballers India international footballers Real Kashmir FC players Lonestar Kashmir F.C. players Bengaluru FC players People from Srinagar I-League 2nd Division players Kerala Blasters FC players