Mohammedan Sporting Club’s latest foreign recruit Anđelo Rudović lands in Kolkata for I-League 2021-22

Mohammedan Sporting Club’s fourth and latest foreign signing, Anđelo Rudović, landed in Kolkata on Monday (December 6) for the upcoming edition of the I-League. Club officials Danish Iqbal, Dipendu Biswas and Belal Khan were present at the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport to receive the Montenegrin.

Serbian midfielder Nikola Stojanovic, Trinidadian striker Marcus Joseph and Syrian defender Shaher Shaheen are Mohammedan Sporting Club’s other overseas recruits.

Rudović is an attacking midfielder who has plied his trade for several Balkan clubs since making his professional debut eight years ago. The 25-year-old rose through the youth ranks at Montenegrin clubs FK Otrant-Olympic, FK Mornar and FK Mogren and made his senior debut for FK Mogren in 2013-14.

He jumped ship to Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven in 2014-15, but didn’t make any appearances in the Eredivisie. However, as a club member, he played for Jong PSV (reserve team of PSV) in Eerste Divisie, the second division of the Dutch league, that season.

Following his one-year stint at PSV, Rudović signed for the then Montenegrin First League club Mladost Podgorica (now OFK Titograd). He scored twice in his 29 appearances for Podgorica, helping them win the 2015-16 First League title.

Rudović was roped in by another Montenegrin top-tier club OFK Petrovac the next season. He scored six goals in 29 matches for them before joining FK Spartak Subotica in 2017 to get a taste of the Serbian SuperLiga.

A lack of game time at Spartak Subotica forced him to return to the Montenegrin First League as he joined FK Kom for the 2017-18 season. Rudović then moved to FK Dečić before being snapped up by MSC for the 2021-22 edition of the I-League. He also represented Montenegro's national side at the U-17 and U-19 levels.

Speaking to Mohammedan Sporting Club’s media team shortly after landing in the ‘City of Joy’, Rudović said:

“I am very happy to be here. Initially, I was a bit hesitant to join Mohammedan because I didn’t know much about the club. But once our captain Nikola briefed me about the club’s history, I didn’t think much. I can’t wait to start playing!”

Former India striker Dipendu Biswas, who is also Mohammedan Sporting Club’s football secretary, believes Rudović’s inclusion will bolster their attack significantly. Biswas said:

“The first impression is always the best impression. His [Rudović’s] physique is quite similar to that of Nikola. I am delighted to see him. Our four foreigners are extremely talented.”

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Mohammedan Sporting Club name 24-member squad for the 124th IFA Shield

Mohammedan Sporting Club will take on defending champions Real Kashmir FC in the quarter-finals of the 124th IFA Shield at the Kalyani Stadium on Wednesday, December 8. The match comes a mere three weeks after MSC ended a 40-year drought to clinch their 12th Calcutta Football League Premier Division A title.

The Black Panthers announced a strong 24-member squad for the tournament on Monday afternoon. In addition to containing most of the usual suspects, it also includes former SC East Bengal players Yumnam Gopi Singh and Asheer Akhtar.

Mohammedan Sporting Club have earned direct entry to the knockout stage of this prestigious competition. Incidentally, it was Real Kashmir who dashed MSC’s silverware hopes by thrashing them 4-0 in last season’s IFA Shield semi-final.

The Snow Leopards also defeated Mohammedan Sporting Club 2-0 in a practice game last week.