Quick Facts
Biography
Raju Eknath Gaikwad (born 25 September 1990 in Mumbai, Maharashtra) is an Indian footballer who plays as a defender for Mohun Bagan in the I-League. Gaikwad is very comfortable on the ball and can easily fill in as a full back even though he is right-footed, and is a long throw specialist.
Career
Pailan Arrows
After spending time at Tata Football Academy Gaikwad signed for Pailan Arrows (then AIFF XI) in the I-League. He made his league debut for the club on 3 December 2010 against Prayag United at the Salt Lake Stadium which was also Pailan Arrows's first ever game in the I-League; Pailan lost 2–1.
East Bengal
In July 2011 Gaikwad signed for East Bengal after one season at Pailan and made his debut for the club on 4 February 2012 after missing the first few months of the season through injury.
Mohun Bagan A.C.
In June 2015 Gaikwad signed for Mohun Bagan from rival club East Bengal.
International
Gaikwad made his debut for the India U23 on 23 February 2011 against Myanmar's U23s in the 2012 Olympic Qualifiers; India U23 won 2–1. He then made his senior debut for India on 21 March 2011 in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers against Chinese Tapei at the MBPJ Stadium in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia; India won 3–0. Gaikwad then won his first championship with India on 11 December 2011 when he helped India beat Afghanistan in the 2011 SAFF Cup. Gaikwad then went on to lead India to win the 2012 Nehru Cup when India managed to beat Cameroon's B team on 2 September 2012 at the Nehru Stadium in the Indian capital, Delhi.
Career Statistics
Club
Statistics accurate as of 27 February 2016
| Club | Season | League | Federation Cup | Durand Cup | AFC | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Pailan Arrows | 2010–11 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 |
| East Bengal | 2011–12 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| 2012–13 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2013–14 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 0 | |
| 2014–15 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 0 | |
| Mumbai City (loan) | 2014 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 |
| Mohun Bagan | 2015–16 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| FC Goa (loan) | 2015 | 9 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 9 | 0 |
| Career total | 75 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 97 | 0 | |
National team statistics
Statistics accurate as of 6 May 2015
| India national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2011 | 9 | 0 |
| 2012 | 8 | 0 |
| 2013 | 4 | 0 |
| 2014 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 23 | 0 |