KOZHIKODE: Gokulam Kerala FC on Saturday appointed Mihir Sawant as goalkeeping coach for the upcoming I-League season.
Mihir is an AFC Level-3 licence holder and was a former I-League goalkeeper. As a player, he has played for Dempo SC, Vasco and Mohemmadans SC.
The 33-year-old coach is based at Pune and has coached Jamshedpur FC (reserve team), Churchill Brothers and Fateh Hyderabad FC.
"It is a great pleasure to come down to Kerala, where people carry the sport in their heart. I believe this is a great opportunity for me to work for Malabarians," Mihir said in an official statement.
"I have already attended training sessions and everything is going extremely well. We have already set our targets and that is to win the I-league and IFA Shield," he added.
Mihir is the youngest goalkeeping coach in I-League and the youngest to hold the Level-3 goalkeeping coaching licence.
Meanwhile, the Kerala based club has kickstarted their pre-season amidst a highly-controlled COVID-safety environment in Kozhikode.
The club from the southern state has resumed training activities after the state-wide COVID-19 lockdown ended on October 31, 2020, while following the Standard Operating Procedures that have been put in place by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) for its tournaments.