ISL
ISL: East Bengal retains Cleiton Silva till 2024
The Brazilian scored 12 goals in 20 games for the Red and Gold.
Cleiton Silva scored 2 and assisted 1 to sink Mumbai City FC.
It was another season to forget for Kolkata-side East Bengal after they finished 9th in the Indian Super League 2022-23 campaign. However, there were some bright sparks throughout the season. One of them was Brazilian forward Cleiton Silva.
On 2nd March, the club announced that Silva has signed an extension with the club for the upcoming season.
Silva was the top scorer for East Bengal in the recently concluded Indian Super League 2022-23 season league stage, netting 12 goals in 20 games. No player scored more goals and won more Hero of the Match awards than Silva at the end of the league stage.
The 36-year-old, who joined EBFC from Bengaluru FC on a one-year deal last year, also struck two goals in the 2022 Durand Cup, both of which came against Mumbai City FC.
A journeyman footballer, Silva plied his trade for clubs such as Brazil’s Madureira Esporte Clube, Mexico’s Delfines FC, China’s Shanghai Shenxin FC, and Thailand’s Super Power Samut Prakan FC, Muangthong United, Chiangrai United FC, Suphanburi FC before making his way to India.
Interestingly, he also played one season for the Thai club BEC-Tero Sasana, whom East Bengal had defeated 3-1 to lift the ASEAN Cup in 2003.
The first foreigner to score 100 goals in Thailand, Silva has been the one of the most prolific scorers during his three-year stint in India’s top-flight league.
After scoring 16 goals for BFC (7 in 2020-21 and 9 in 2021-22), the Brazilian recorded his finest season in the Hero ISL with the Red & Golds. Notably, he is the first East Bengal player to score 12 goals in India’s top-flight competition since Ranti Martins in the 2015-16 I-League.
Silva's impressive performance was one of the highlights of his team's Hero ISL 2022-23 campaign. His goalscoring ability and experience will prove invaluable in the upcoming Hero Super Cup and the ensuing domestic season.
Silva, the only player to start all 20 games for EBFC in the 2022-23 Hero ISL league stage, expressed his excitement at continuing with the Kolkata-based club.
Commenting on the occasion, Cleiton said, “I’m happy to be here for the next season. I believe in the project. Despite the problems, we‘ve had some good moments in the league. I think we can learn and grow together in the next season. Joy East Bengal!”
