Edwin Sydney Vanspaul Henry (born 24 September 1992) is an Indian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

or defender for

East Bengal ur, , common_name = East Bengal , status = Province of the Dominion of Pakistan , p1 = Bengal Presidency , flag_p1 = Flag of British Bengal.svg , s1 = Eas ...

in the

Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is an Indian professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the Indian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Organised by the All India Football Federat ...

Early career

Son of a sports enthusiast, Edwin Sydney grew up watching his father play one or another game daily. But football attracted him the most, and since his 5th grade, he started playing football. Unfortunately, Edwin failed to clear his 12th exam and joined Loyola College,

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of ...

. Chennai Football Association (CFA) senior division team Indian Bank used to train at Loyola College, and Edwin got an opportunity to train with the team, soon they signed him for CFA senior division league.

Career

Indian Bank

Edwin made his debut in CFA senior division in 2010 when he started and played as a striker against Central Excise. Indian Bank won the game three goals to nil. The Neyveli born footballer went on to score 3 goals in 28 appearances for Indian Bank during 2010-2013, before he moved to Chennai FC.

Chennai FC

Edwin shifted to central midfield at Chennai FC, and debuted in the game against

Indian Arrows Indian Arrows (formerly known as Pailan Arrows) was an Indian developmental football club that competed in the I-League. The club was formed by the All India Football Federation in 2010, with a main goal of nurturing young Indian football talen ...

which Chennai FC went on to win 3–0. The midfielder went on to score 6 goals in 22 appearances for Chennai FC during 2014–2015 season.

Chennai City

Edwin joined

Chennai City Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

in 2016, where he played as a winger primarily. He scored 8 goals in 22 appearances in the CFA Senior Division league between 2016 and 2017. In 2016 Chennai City entered

I-league The I-League (known as Hero I-League for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp) is the second-tier men's professional football competition of the Indian football league system. It is currently contested by 12 clubs across the country with the win ...

as direct entrants, and signed Edwin soon after. On 21 January 2017 Vanspaul made his professional debut in the I-League for Chennai City against

Mohun Bagan Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is an Indian professional sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, its football section is one of the oldest in India and Asia. The club is most notable for its victory over East Yorkshire Regiment ...

. He started and played 68 minutes as Chennai City lost 2–1. Edwin went on to play 12 games during the season in total. In 2017-18 I-League season, under

V. Soundararajan V Soundararajan is an Indian association football manager and former player, who last managed I-League club Chennai City FC. Playing career Soundarajan played for Tamil Nadu football team and Railways football team as a midfielder. Coach ...

, Edwin's position was constantly shifted from central midfield to left back or right wing. Despite the poor performance of the team, Edwin caught the eye with his accurate passing ability. In 2018-19 season, he was integral in helping

win their maiden

I-League The I-League (known as Hero I-League for sponsorship ties with Hero MotoCorp) is the second-tier men's professional football competition of the Indian football league system. It is currently contested by 12 clubs across the country with the win ...

title. Edwins's performance was highly praised and helped him gain interest from many ISL clubs.

Chennaiyin

In the 2019 Summer Transfer Window, former

champions and his home state club Chennaiyin signed him permanently. He would play 20 times during the season, primarily as a right back and in center midfield later in the season due to the emergence of

Laldinliana Renthlei Laldinliana Renthlei (born 26 August 1998), is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Jamshedpur in the Indian Super League. Career Born in Mizoram, Renthlei began his career in the Mizoram Premier League with Chhin ...

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Club

;Chennai City *

: 2018–19 ;Chennaiyin *

: runner-up 2019–20

References

Living people People from Cuddalore district Indian men's footballers Chennai City FC players Men's association football midfielders Footballers from Tamil Nadu I-League players 1992 births Indian Super League players Chennaiyin FC players East Bengal Club players {{India-footy-bio-stub