BANGALORE: Prashanth Kalinga has impressed Richard Hood, head of Youth Development in Bangalore Football Club. The 15-year-old was adjudged the most promising player and the best stopper of their under-19 football squad.
Prashanth hails from the local football stronghold area of Gautamapuram. Growing up in a place where there is a statue of Pele and every kid’s first plaything is a football, he started off with the game at a very early age of six. He often played with older players on the Gun Troop ground and that is said to have made him tougher and more mature.
Having seen scores of young boys leave the city every year to join some of the biggest clubs in the country, Prashanth had learnt to dream big and understood the kind of commitment it takes to become a professional.
“I always wanted to play at the highest level in India, and with Bangalore Football Club, a lot of youngsters have the chance to train under an I-League club. I will make the most of the opportunities that I have got to become the best I can be over the years,” says Prashanth.
He aspires to go marching out with the first team playing XI in the future and hopes to be called for the national squads.
“We recognise his talent, his professional approach and his attitude towards his career. We find him to be a dedicated and hardworking player who is always striving to improve himself. That matched with his abilities on and off the ball in defensive roles will go a long way in steering his football career in the right path,” says Richard Hood.
Bangalore Football Club won the I-League title and they have a team in the ongoing super division league as well. There are plenty of opportunities for Prashanth and the determined defender is sure to check the progress of many an attacker as he climbs up the ladder of success.