# 2017–18 NorthEast United FC season

The 2017–18 NorthEast United FC season was the club's fourth season since its establishment in 2014 and their fourth season in the Indian Super League.

## Squad
### Current squad

| Squad No. | Name | Position(s) | Date of Birth (Age) |
| Goalkeepers |||||
| 1 | Ravi Kumar | GK | (1993-07-04) 4 July 1993 (age 31) |
| 13 | Rehenesh TP | GK | (1993-02-13) 13 February 1993 (age 31) |
| 31 | Gurpreet Singh Chabhal | GK | (1995-07-15) 15 July 1995 (age 29) |
| Defenders |||||
| 3 | Sambinha | CB / DM | (1992-09-23) 23 September 1992 (age 32) |
| 4 | Nirmal Chettri | RB / RWB / CB / DM | (1991-10-21) 21 October 1991 (age 33) |
| 5 | Jose Goncalves (C) | CB / LWB / LB | (1985-09-13) 13 September 1985 (age 39) |
| 12 | Reagan Singh | RB / RWB / CB | (1991-04-01) 1 April 1991 (age 33) |
| 15 | Abdul Hakku | CB / RB | (1994-06-10) 10 June 1994 (age 30) |
| 16 | Robert Lalthlamuana | LB / LM / RB | (1988-09-04) 4 September 1988 (age 36) |
| 21 | Martin Diaz | CB / LB / DM | (1988-03-17) 17 March 1988 (age 36) |
| 33 | Gursimrat Singh Gill | CB | (1997-02-11) 11 February 1997 (age 27) |
| Midfielders |||||
| 6 | Maic Sema | RM / LM / AM | (1988-12-02) 2 December 1988 (age 36) |
| 10 | Marcinho | AM / LW / RW | (1986-05-14) 14 May 1986 (age 38) |
| 14 | Rowllin Borges | DM | (1992-06-05) 5 June 1992 (age 32) |
| 17 | Sushil Meitei | LW / RW / AM | (1997-02-08) 8 February 1997 (age 27) |
| 18 | Malemngamba Meitei | RW / AM / LW | (1992-01-05) 5 January 1992 (age 32) |
| 20 | Lalrindika Ralte | LM / LW / CF | (1992-09-07) 7 September 1992 (age 32) |
| 23 | Helio Pinto | CM / DM / AM | (1984-02-29) 29 February 1984 (age 40) |
| 45 | Fanai Lalrempuia | CM | (1996-05-11) 11 May 1996 (age 28) |
| Strikers |||||
| 9 | Seiminlen Doungel | LW / CF / RW | (1994-01-03) 3 January 1994 (age 30) |
| 11 | Halicharan Narzary | LW / CF / RW | (1994-05-10) 10 May 1994 (age 30) |
| 27 | John Mosquera | CF | (1988-01-15) 15 January 1988 (age 36) |
| 99 | Danilo Lopes Cezario | CF | (1991-04-25) 25 April 1991 (age 33) |
Last updated: 6 March 2018. Source:

### Players

Players and squad numbers last updated on 6 March 2018. Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| N | Pos. | Name | Age | Since | App | Goals | Ends | Transfer fee | Notes |
| 1 | GK | Ravi Kumar | 31 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Draft (₹1.5M) | Transfer fee paid to Minerva Punjab Picked in draft. |
| 13 | GK | Rehenesh TP | 31 | 2015 | 27 | 0 | 2019 | Retained | Retained before draft. |
| 31 | GK | Gurpreet Singh Chabhal | 29 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 3 | DF | Sambinha | 32 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Loan | |
| 4 | DF | Nirmal Chettri | 34 | 2016 | 8 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Retained in draft. |
| 12 | DF | Reagan Singh | 33 | 2016 | 4 | 0 | 2018 | Draft | Retained in draft. |
| 15 | DF | Abdul Hakku | 30 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 16 | DF | Robert Lalthlamuana | 36 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 5 | DF | José Gonçalves | 39 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | |
| 21 | DF | Martín Díaz | 36 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | |
| 33 | DF | Gursimrat Singh Gill | 27 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 8 | MF | Adilson | 36 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | |
| 10 | MF | Marcinho | 38 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Free | |
| 14 | MF | Rowllin Borges | 32 | 2016 | 13 | 0 | 2019 | Retained | Retained before draft. |
| 17 | MF | Sushil Meitei | 27 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 18 | MF | Malemngamba Meitei | 32 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 20 | MF | Lalrindika Ralte | 32 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 45 | MF | Fanai Lalrempuia | 28 | 2016 | 2 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Retained in draft. |
| 7 | FW | Odaïr Fortes | 37 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | |
| 9 | FW | Seminlen Doungel | 30 | 2017 | 10 | 1 | 2018 | Draft | Picked in draft. |
| 11 | FW | Halicharan Narzary | 30 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Draft | Retained in draft. |
| 19 | FW | Luis Páez | 38 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | |
| 99 | FW | Danilo | 33 | 2017 | 0 | 0 | 2018 | Free | |
| 23 | MF | Hélio Pinto | 39 | 2018 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | Signed in Mid-season transfer window |
| 6 | MF | Maic Sema | 36 | 2018 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | Signed in Mid-season transfer window |
| 27 | FW | John Mosquera | 36 | 2018 | 0 | 0 | Undisclosed | Free | Signed in Mid-season transfer window |
* Last updated: 6 March 2018
* Source: Indian Super League
* Ordered by position.

## Background

2016 was another disappointing season for NorthEast United. NorthEast United started their campaign on a high note with two consecutive wins over Kerala Blasters and Goa. By mid-season NorthEast United lost all the momentum and had longest winless run of 5 matches (shared with Pune City and Chennaiyin) and longest losing run of 4 matches. By the end of season NorthEast United came very close to qualifying for knockout phase. In their final match of regular league phase NorthEast United needed a win against Kerala Blasters to proceed further, which they ended up losing 1–0 by conceding a goal at 66th minute. NorthEast United finished 5th on points table with 18 points from 14 matches. After the end of season, NorthEast United parted ways with coach Nelo Vingada on mutual consent.

### Transfers

At the end of 2016 Indian Super League season majority of domestic players from NorthEast United were loaned by or transferred to I-League clubs for 2016–17 season. After I-League season all loaned out players returned to club. However, due to the Indian Super League regulation each club was allowed to retain a maximum of two Indian players over the age of twenty-one (21) from previous squad.
NorthEast United announced on 17 July 2017 that João Carlos Pires de Deus will be taking over as head coach. Deus said:
   I am a very positive man and I am very positive about the challenge that I have with NorthEast United FC. The club is new with a vibrant fan base and owners who have the right vision to develop football in the region. I can assure the fans that we will play positive football and that all the players and the staff will work hard. We will leave no stone unturned so that we can achieve our objectives. I believe that young players are important in any campaign and will ensure that they fit seamlessly into our setup. This year, we will be focused on playing good football and winning as many games as we can...taking it one game at a time.
On 8 July, NorthEast United announced they are retaining Rehenesh TP and Rowllin Borges for two years. Remaining players from previous squad who had returned from loans namely Nirmal Chettri, Reagan Singh, Fanai Lalrempuia, Subrata Pal, Seityasen Singh, Robin Gurung and Sumeet Passi went straight into players draft.
In ISL draft held on 23 July 2017, NorthEast United retained defenders Nirmal Chettri and Reagan Singh and midfielder Fanai Lalrempuia. NorthEast United added eight new players from draft, goalkeepers Ravi Kumar and Gurpreet Singh Chabhal, defenders Robert Lalthlamuana, Gursimrat Singh Gill and Abdul Hakku, midfielders Lalrindika Ralte, Malemngamba Meitei and Sushil Meitei. Forward Seminlen Doungel made his come back to NorthEast United for a second stint along with forward Halicharan Narzary.
In ISL draft, goalkeeper Subrata Pal, defender Robin Gurung and forward Sumeet Passi drafted to new expansion franchise Jamshedpur FC. Midfielder Seityasen Singh was picked by Delhi Dynamos.
On 13 September, NorthEast United announced their eight foreign singing namely defenders Martín Díaz, Sambinha and José Gonçalves, midfielders Adilson and Marcinho and forwards Luis Páez, Odaïr Fortes and Wellington da Silva on their official Twitter account from series of Tweets.
Wellington da Silva was later replaced by forward Danilo for unknown reasons.

#### Loan return and players draft

| Loan Return | Loan Return | Loan Return | Loan Return | Draft / Retain | Draft / Retain | Draft / Retain | Draft / Retain |
| Date | Pos. | Name | From | Date | To | Draft Round | Ref. |
| 30 June 2017 | GK | Rehenesh TP | East Bengal | 8 July 2017 | Retained | Pre-draft | |
| 30 June 2017 | MF | Rowllin Borges | East Bengal | 8 July 2017 | Pre-draft | |
| 30 June 2017 | GK | Subrata Pal | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Jamshedpur FC | Round 2 | |
| 30 June 2017 | FW | Halicharan Narzary | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Retained | Round 3 | |
| 30 June 2017 | DF | Nirmal Chettri | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Retained | Round 4 | |
| 30 June 2017 | MF | Seityasen Singh | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Delhi Dynamos | Round 5 | |
| 30 June 2017 | DF | Robin Gurung | East Bengal | 23 July 2017 | Jamshedpur FC | Round 5 | |
| 30 June 2017 | DF | Reagan Singh | Mumbai F.C. | 23 July 2017 | Retained | Round 8 | |
| 30 June 2017 | FW | Sumeet Passi | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Jamshedpur FC | Round 12 | |
| 30 June 2017 | MF | Fanai Lalrempuia | Minerva Punjab | 23 July 2017 | Retained | Round 13 | |

#### In

| No. | Pos. | Name | From | Date | Type |
| 13 | GK | Rehenesh TP | East Bengal | 8 July 2017 | Retained |
| 14 | MF | Rowllin Borges | East Bengal | 8 July 2017 | Retained |
| 11 | FW | Halicharan Narzary | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 4 | DF | Nirmal Chettri | DSK Shivajians | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 20 | MF | Lalrindika Ralte | East Bengal | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 16 | DF | Robert Lalthlamuana | East Bengal | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 9 | FW | Seminlen Doungel | Bengaluru | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 12 | DF | Reagan Singh | Mumbai F.C. | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 1 | GK | Ravi Kumar | Sporting Goa | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 33 | DF | Gursimrat Singh Gill | Bengaluru | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 18 | MF | Malemngamba Meitei | NEROCA | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 15 | DF | Abdul Hakku | Fateh Hyderabad | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 45 | MF | Fanai Lalrempuia | Minerva Punjab | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 31 | GK | Gurpreet Singh Chabhal | Delhi United | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 17 | MF | Sushil Meitei | Royal Wahingdoh | 23 July 2017 | Draft |
| 19 | FW | Luis Páez | Rionegro Águilas | 13 September 2017 | Free |
| 21 | DF | Martín Díaz | Liverpool Montevideo | 13 September 2017 | Free |
| 3 | DF | Sambinha | Sporting CP | 13 September 2017 | Loan |
| 10 | MF | Marcinho | Free Agent | 13 September 2017 | — |
| 5 | DF | José Gonçalves | Free Agent | 13 September 2017 | — |
| 7 | FW | Odaïr Fortes | Free Agent | 13 September 2017 | — |
| 8 | MF | Adilson | Free Agent | 13 September 2017 | — |
| 99 | FW | Danilo | Free Agent | 13 September 2017 | — |
| 23 | MF | Helio Pinto | Kongsvinger IL | 1 January 2018 | Free |
| 6 | MF | Maic Sema | Örebro SK | 20 January 2018 | Free |
| 27 | FW | John Mosquera | La Serena | 25 January 2018 | Free |
    n1. ^ Player was retained by club before draft.
    n2. ^ Player was part of club's previous season squad but had to enter players draft due to the Indian Super League regulation.

## Pre-season and friendlies

NorthEast United began their pre-season training on 27 September. Squad gather in Imphal on 17 October for 10-day pre-season training camp where they played an exhibition match against NEROCA which ended as 2–0 in favor of NorthEast United.
After training in Imphal, club went to Antalya, Turkey for the final leg of the pre-season. In Turkey, NorthEast United played friendly matches against Iraqi top division sides Al-Kahraba FC, Al-Naft SC, Naft Al-Janoob SC, Al-Najaf FC and Turkish top division side Alanyaspor.

## Indian Super League

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 6 | Kerala Blasters | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 20 | 22 | −2 | 25 |
| 7 | Mumbai City | 18 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 25 | 29 | −4 | 23 |
| 8 | Delhi Dynamos | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 27 | 37 | −10 | 19 |
| 9 | ATK | 18 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 16 | 30 | −14 | 16 |
| 10 | NorthEast United | 18 | 3 | 2 | 13 | 12 | 27 | −15 | 11 |

### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 6 March 2018. Source: Matches

### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| Ground | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | A |
| Result | D | L | W | L | L | L | L | W | L | W | L | D | L | L | L | L | L | L |

### Matches
## Indian Super Cup

Announced on 15 March 2018, 2018 Indian Super Cup is a replacement for the Federation Cup. The qualifiers for the inaugural tournament are to begin on 15 March and conclude on 31 March 2018. The tournament proper will then commence on 5 April and conclude with the final on 25 April 2018.
NorthEast, having finished the 2017–18 ISL at the bottom spot, had to play the qualifiers to enter the competition. They played their qualifier match against Gokulam Kerala on 15 Match 2018 at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar which they lost 0-2.

### Foreign Players

Indian Super Cup, unlike Indian Super League, allows only 6 foreign players in squad for the tournament. Out of the 6 players 5 can be fielded by the teams.
    As of 14 March 2018
| No. | Position | Player |
| 3 | DF | Sambinha |
| 5 | DF | José Gonçalves |
| 6 | MF | Maic Sema |
| 10 | MF | Marcinho |
| 21 | DF | Martín Díaz |
| 99 | FW | Danilo |

### Qualifiers
## Management

    Updated 12 January 2018.
| Position | Name |
| Head coach | Avram Grant |
| Assistant coach | Eelco Schattorie |
| Goalkeeping coach | Joseph Sidy |
| Strength and conditioning coach | Mauro André Claro Martins |
| Physiotherapist | Arvind Yadav |

## Squad statistics

    As of 15 March 2018

### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Indian Super League | Indian Super League | Indian Super Cup | Indian Super Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | IND | Ravi Kumar | 2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | GNB | Sambinha | 15 | 1 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | IND | Nirmal Chettri | 17 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | POR | José Gonçalves | 17 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 6 | MF | SWE | Maic Sema | 8 | 0 | 5+2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | IND | Seminlen Doungel | 16 | 4 | 13+2 | 4 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | BRA | Marcinho | 17 | 4 | 15+1 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 11 | FW | IND | Halicharan Narzary | 14 | 0 | 10+3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | IND | Reagan Singh | 16 | 0 | 14+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | IND | Rehenesh TP | 18 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | FW | IND | Rowllin Borges | 17 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | DF | IND | Abdul Hakku | 4 | 0 | 3+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | IND | Robert Lalthlamuana | 10 | 0 | 6+3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | IND | Sushil Meitei | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | MF | IND | Malemngamba Meitei | 7 | 0 | 4+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | IND | Lalrindika Ralte | 13 | 0 | 7+5 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | DF | URU | Martín Díaz | 17 | 0 | 14+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | MF | POR | Helio Pinto | 3 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | FW | COL | John Mosquera | 8 | 1 | 2+6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | IND | Gursimrat Singh Gill | 5 | 1 | 2+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 45 | MF | IND | Fanai Lalrempuia | 4 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 99 | FW | BRA | Danilo | 19 | 1 | 13+5 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Players who left NorthEast United during the season: ||||||||||
| 8 | MF | BRA | Adilson Goiano | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | FW | CPV | Odaïr Fortes | 4 | 0 | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | COL | Luis Páez | 6 | 0 | 1+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goal scorers

| Place | Position | Number | Name | Indian Super League | Indian Super Cup | Total |
| 1 | FW | 9 | Seminlen Doungel | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 1 | MF | 10 | Marcinho | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | FW | 99 | Danilo | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | FW | 27 | John Mosquera | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | DF | 3 | Sambinha | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | DF | 33 | Gursimrat Singh Gill | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| | | | TOTALS | 12 | 0 | 12 |

### Disciplinary record

| Number | Position | Name | Indian Super League | Indian Super League | Total | Total |
| 3 | DF | Sambinha | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | Nirmal Chettri | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | José Gonçalves | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | Adilson | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | Seiminlen Doungel | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | Marcinho | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | Reagan Singh | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 13 | GK | Rehenesh TP | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | Rowllin Borges | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | Robert Lalthlamuana | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | Luis Páez | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | Lalrindika Ralte | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 21 | DF | Martín Díaz | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 33 | DF | Gursimrat Singh Gill | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 27 | DF | John Mosquera | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 99 | FW | Danilo | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | | TOTALS | 25 | 1 | 25 | 1 |