Bengaluru FC have bolstered their attack ahead of the upcoming AFC Cup Playoff Stage with the signing of Congolese striker Prince Vinny Ibara Doniama.
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Bengaluru FC have bolstered their attack ahead of the upcoming AFC Cup Playoff Stage. They have announced the signing of Congolese striker Prince Vinny Ibara Doniama, with the decision announced by the club on Friday. The 25-year-old most recently represented Ligue 2 side Chateauroux on loan from Belgian First Division A side Beerschot. Ibara joins on a two-year deal with an optional one-year extension.
Ibara began his career at ACNFF in Congo. He had stints with clubs in Gabon and Tunisia before joining Qatar Stars League side Al-Wakrah in 2017. The following season, Ibara moved to Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 side USM Alger. The footballer scored nine League goals helping Alger to the Championnat National 1 title.
“I’m really excited to be part of this team. I consider it as a project and not a business deal. I’ve won a fair few championships and titles in the clubs that I’ve played for but I feel India and Asia is the next challenge for me. That’s the motivating factor. Also, the fact that the coach trusts me to lead the attack is why I’ve picked Bengaluru FC,” said Ibara, after completing the formalities on his deal
Ibara, a resident of Brazzaville, has represented the Congo National team on 13 occasions. The footballer made his debut in a friendly against Morocco in 2016. He has scored four times for his country. The first of those goals came in African Cup of Nations qualifiers against Liberia in 2018.
“That the club is going to be playing Asian competition is one of the reasons I have signed here. I’m not anxious, I’m eager to land and score as many goals as possible for this football club. I did have a few offers from elsewhere, but I felt India was the right project for me. The focus is on the word ‘project’, because that’s what the coach wants to do, that’s what the coach aims to implement and I want to be part of it,” added Ibara.
Head Coach Marco Pezzaiuoli said he was eager to see the striker join the team in pre-season.
“Prince is a young striker who will bring much to the squad. He has the experience of playing in Europe and also for the national team of Congo and that will give us more quality to the squad. Importantly, he has won silverware and will bring that mentality to the side. I would like to welcome him to the BFC family and hope we can achieve success together,” said Pezzaiuoli.
Hyderabad FC are the other club to have maintained an active profile recently. The Hyderabad-based franchise has retained Brazilian midfielder Joao Victor who signed on a two-year extension till the end of the 2022-23 campaign. Victor was an integral part of the HFC squad that finished just outside the top-4 in the 2019-20 season of the ISL.
