Chencho is the leading goalscorer of Bhutan and comes with the experience of having played in the I-League and ISL over the years.
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Indian Super League (ISL) side Kerala Blasters FC have announced the signing of Bhutanese striker Chencho Gyeltshen. The 25-year-old who is the leading goalscorer of his nation comes with the experience of having played in the I-League and ISL over the years. Meanwhile, he is also a versatile attacking player who predominantly plays on the left-wing or as center-forward and can also fit in at right-wing position. Chencho is affectionately known as “CG7” for his liking of the Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo.
“I am very delighted to share that joining Kerala Blasters is one of my wishes come true. I can’t wait to join the Yellow army and play in front of all the fans,” Chencho wrote on his official Facebook page.
Minerva Punjab FC signed the forward back in 2017 where he had a fantastic season, winning the I-League title. He scored seven goals and provided four assists during the title-winning campaign.
Chencho caught the eye of ISL side Bengaluru FC following his successful stint with Minerva Punjab FC. The Blues brought in the attacking midfielder for the 2018-19 season. He played nine matches and scored two goals for the Bengaluru-based side. However, the 25-year-old couldn’t find regular game time because of the presence of seasoned campaigners Sunil Chhetri and Xisco Hernandez. He found himself coming off the bench more often.
Therefore, the Bhutan international was loaned out to Neroca FC in order to get more game time. Chencho returned back to Bhutan in December 2019 to sign for Paro FC, where he scored six goals in 16 Bhutan Premier League matches.
Chencho made a comeback to India last year, signing with his former club Round Glass Punjab FC in the I-League. He scored seven goals and registered one assist. Chencho’s signing is a very good buy for the Blasters as he is a proven talent in the subcontinent and he also has experience of playing in the Thai League and Bangladesh Premier League.
“We now have Bhutanese goal machine in our ranks,” Kerala Blasters wrote on their official social media page to announce the signing of the Bhutanese international.
Meanwhile, the Yellow Army had a relatively small budget for buying the Asian players as they wanted to invest more in other departments. They were reportedly looking for an Asian attacking player for some time now and were offered players from Iran and other Asian countries. However in the end, they signed the Bhutanese after his contract with Round Glass Punjab FC was mutually terminated.
The Blasters have already brought in Spanish striker Alvaro Vazquez from Sporting de Gijon along with Uruguayan midfielder Adrian Luna and Jorge Diaz. Therefore the Yellow Army’s forward line looks potent on paper and if the new boss Ivan Vukomanovic can find the right combination, the future looks bright for them.
Chencho is a versatile attacking player who can comfortably play anywhere up front. The Serbian coach predominantly likes to deploy a 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 formation with two holding midfielders. Blasters already have a strong Indian midfield line-up consisting of Sahal Abdul Samad, Jeakson Singh and, new signing Harmanjot Singh Khabra.
Veteran Khabra is a hard tackler who can also play as a right midfielder and right-back, whereas Jeakason is a ball-playing midfielder who can be a midfield general. Meanwhile, Sahal is a flamboyant creative player who can open up the opposition defence with his skills and defence-splitting passes.
Thus, this will allow Vukomanovic to play two strikers up front. Vazquez, Chencho, and Diaz can easily occupy the forward line and if the coach uses them properly by deploying an effective rotation policy, the team can excel up front.
