Orissa footballer Das signs for Kolkata club

Bhubaneswar footballer Devi Prasad Das created news by signing a deal to play for Kolkata``s Chirag United Sporting Club. The one-year contract is expected to give goalkeeper Das opportunities to showcase his ability in the I-League, Kolkata Premier Division League and the other major tournaments of the country. He also stands to earn good money, which he does not want to disclose. Chirag United officials were interested to sign Das for two years. But since the footballer has good prospect to get a bigger offer next year, it was decided to limit the period of the contract to one year,```` revealed former footballer Mohammad Shahid Jabbar, who negotiated the deal. A member of local football club, Unit-VI Athletic Association, Das caught the attention of Chirag United officials on the basis of his impressive performance in Santosh Trophy and a couple of all-India tournaments. Besides his home State and club, he also played for local Kishore Club and Sambalpur-based Samaleswari Sporting. In Santosh Trophy, Orissa started their campaign on a disastrous note by suffering a 7-2 defeat at the hands of Manipur. But in the next two league ties, Orissa did well to hold Services and Nagaland to 1-1 and 2-2 draws respectively. The transformation in performance was possible mainly because of some acrobatic saves by Das. Tall, athletic and agile, Das started playing football eight years ago. Before graduating to senior level, he spent four years, honing his skill at the State-run Centre of Excellence, Cuttack. Son of Late Pramod Chandra Das, Devi earlier participated in inter-university and under-21 National championships. Describing Chirag United, Das said the premier division Kolkata club was originally established in 1927 as Everready Association. In 2006, it was renamed as Chirag United Sports Club following the take over by Chirag Sports Pvt Ltd, a RP Group company. In its third attempt, the club has earned a promotion to the 1st Division of I-League for the next season,```` claimed Das, who is set to leave for Kolkata on June 23.