East Bengal have decided to make the loan of defender Lalchungnunga permanent. They have signed him on a long-term deal that is expected to keep him with the Red and Gold Brigade until the 2025/26 season.
The youngster was initially on loan from I League side Sreenidi Deccan FC and had joined East Bengal in the summer. However, now that his loan has been made permanent, he will complete his transfer to Kolkata at the start of the 2023-24 season.
Lalchungnunga came up through the youth academy of Aizawl FC where he rose through the ranks in rapid succession before making his senior debut for the team in 2019. His first senior appearance for the club from Mizoram came against NEROCA FC on January 30, 2021. The defender made four appearances during the course of that 2020-21 season.
He continued to make rapid strides in Aizawl and after spending two seasons with the club, the 22-year-old decided to join Sreenidi Deccan FC. Lalchungnunga put pen to a two-year contract in August 2021.
Having made 17 appearances for the
Hyderabad-based unit in the Hero I League, he has scored a solitary goal and was also one of their best players during the 2021-22 season. The 22-year-old not only became a mainstay in the starting XI, but was also one of the leaders of the backline for Sreenidi Deccan and showed plenty of solidity and composure.
On the back of his revelatory and consistent performances, he was also named in the I League and Santosh Trophy all-star squads that took on the Indian national team earlier this year.
A big move for him would soon be on the horizon as Kolkata giants East Bengal took notice of his talents. The promising defender was roped in on a one-year loan deal in August 2022.
He made his competitive debut for East Bengal on August 22 of this year when he played in a Durand Cup match against Indian Navy at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan.
The youngster is capable of playing at both full-back and centre-back and his versatility is top notch. This has allowed manager Stephen Constantine to use him in a variety of roles but mostly at the centre of the backline. The defender has repaid that faith and has played a crucial role at the heart of East Bengal’s defence this season.
