Shilton Sydney D'Silva (born 15 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 lea ...

who plays as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

for

Gokulam Kerala Gokulam Kerala Football Club is an Indian professional association football, football club based in Kozhikode, Kerala. Founded in 2017, the club competes in the I-League, the second tier of the Indian football league system. They won the 2020� ...

in the

I-League The I-League is the men's second professional football division of the Indian football league system behind the Indian Super League. Administered by the All India Football Federation, it is currently contested by 13 clubs. It operates as a s ...

Career

Early career

Born in

Mumbai (Bombay) Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12.5 ...

, D'Silva was discovered playing football for his school team, the St Pius X High School (Bombay), shortly thereafter he was selected to play for state-level

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

s in the Maharashtra U14 team. After playing for the state during a 10-day football festival, D'Silva joined the youth set-up of

side

Mahindra United Mahindra United Football Club (formerly known as Mahindra & Mahindra) was an Indian professional football club based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Founded in 1962, the club competed in the I-League, then top tier of Indian football league system, bef ...

. While with Mahindra United, D'Silva played for the under-15 side in the Manchester United Premier Cup. Then, when Mahindra United U15s played against the India U16 side D'Silva was spotted by youth coach Colm Toal and was thus selected to join the India youth set-up.

Pailan Arrows

In 2010, after the disbanding of

, D'Silva was selected to play for the

Pailan Arrows Indian Arrows (formerly known as Pailan Arrows) is an Indian developmental football team that competes in the Indian national football tiers. They competed in the I-League. The club was formed by the All India Football Federation in 2010, wi ...

, then known as AIFF XI, of the

. This team would be a team full of under-23 players in preparation for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

. D'Silva made his professional debut for AIFF XI on 1 December 2010 against Chirag United in which AIFF XI fell 1–2 in their first ever game. He then scored his first professional goal on 22 December 2010 against

Air India FC Air India Football Club is a football section of the same-named Indian institutional multi-sports club. Founded by Anand Prajapati in 1952, the club is based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Sponsored by Air India, the club previously played in the Mu ...

. His 34th-minute strike helped AIFF XI win 2–1. He then scored his second goal of the season against

Dempo Dempo Mining Corporation Limited is a prominent mining company from the western Indian state of Goa. The mineral business was founded by Vasantrao S. Dempo in 1941, along with his younger brother Vaikuntrao Dempo. Vasantrao was the founding c ...

with a 10th-minute goal that lead to a 1–1 draw against the champions. On 20 December 2011, during a

Federation Cup (India) The Federation Cup was an annual knockout football competition and the premier cup competition in men's domestic Indian football until 2017. Established in 1977, it was organized by the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The Federation Cu ...

match against

Mumbai FC Mumbai Football Club was an Indian professional football club based in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The club predominantly competed in I-League, then top flight of Indian football league system. Mumbai also participated in MDFA Elite League. The club ...

, D'Silva suffered an

ACL tear ACL may refer to: Aviation * IATA airport code for Aguaclara Airport in Casanare Department, Colombia Companies and organizations * ACL Cables, a cable manufacturing company in Sri Lanka * Administration for Community Living, United States, f ...

. This injury lead him to miss the

2011–12 I-League The 2011–12 I-League was the fifth season of the I-League. The season began in October 2011 and ended in May 2012. Salgaocar are the defending champions, having won their maiden title in the previous season. The current edition has a tota ...

season. After a year out, D'Silva rejoined the team in November 2012, however, in a friendly match against

Mohammedan ''Mohammedan'' (also spelled ''Muhammadan'', ''Mahommedan'', ''Mahomedan'' or ''Mahometan'') is a term for a follower of Muhammad, the Islamic prophet. It is used as both a noun and an adjective, meaning belonging or relating to, either Muhamm ...

, challenge by Phoolchand Hembram left D'Silva with a broken tibia and fibula. This led to another surgery which meant that D'Silva would miss the

2012–13 I-League The 2012–13 I-League was the sixth season of the I-League, the Indian professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 2007. The season began on 6 October 2012 and finished on 12 May 2013 with Churchill Brothers ...

season, the last ever season for Pailan Arrows.

Rehab

After the disbandment of

, D'Silva took a break from football to focus on his education and finish his exams. After completing graduation, former

India national under-19 football team The India national under-20 football team represents India at all international under-20 tournaments. They act as the main feeder team for the India U-23 and the senior Indian football team. This team is for Indian players aged under 19 at th ...

head coach, Colm Toal, recommended D'Silva to complete his rehab at the

AIFF AIFF may refer to: * Audio Interchange File Format * All India Football Federation, the national governing body of Association football in India Film festivals * Addis International Film Festival, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia * Alexandria Internation ...

Academy in

Goa Goa (; ; ) is a state on the southwestern coast of India within the Konkan region, geographically separated from the Deccan highlands by the Western Ghats. It is bound by the Indian states of Maharashtra to the north, and Karnataka to the ...

. D'Silva said "The rehab went perfectly. I will remain indebted for life to the physiotherapists who helped me there. AIFF took care of all my expenses and Colm has also always been a pillar of support".

Bengaluru FC

Before the 2014–15 season, D'Silva was signed by reigning

champions

Bengaluru FC Bengaluru Football Club () (Kannada: ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು.ಎಫ್.ಸಿ) is an Indian professional football club based in Bengaluru, Karnataka. The club competes in the Indian Super League, the top flight of Indian football. The club w ...

Mumbai FC (loan)

On 31 March 2015, D'Silva signed for fellow

club

on loan from

. He appeared on the bench for the team on 3 April against

Shillong Lajong Shillong Lajong Football Club (founded as Lajong SC) is an Indian professional football club based in Shillong, Meghalaya. The club is currently competing in the I-League, the second tier of the Indian football league system, following promotio ...

. He did not play as Mumbai fell 6–0. D'Silva then made his first professional appearance in four years on 22 April against Sporting Goa. He came on as an 85th-minute substitute for

Climax Lawrence Climax Lourenco Lawrence (born 16 January 1979) is a retired Indian professional football midfielder. He last played for FC Bardez in the Goa Professional League in 2017. National team In 2002, he was called to the India national football team ...

as Mumbai drew 1–1. After the season finished, D'Silva returned to his parent club before being released. However, soon after being released, it was announced that D'Silva would be available for selection during the 2014 Indian Super League domestic draft.

Mumbai

On 27 February 2016, D'Silva made another return to professional football, appearing on the bench for

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

in an

match against Sporting Goa. On 6 December 2016 D'Silva made his season debut for Mumbai in their opening

MDFA Elite Division The Mumbai Football League, also known as the Harwood League, is organised by Mumbai Football Association (MFA), as a ladder-based competition involving a total of five divisions and over 300 teams. It is the top football league in Mumbai and ...

match against Mumbai Customs. D'Silva started the match as Mumbai came out 8–3 winners.

Mohun Bagan

On 24 July 2017 it was announced that D'Silva had signed with

side

Mohun Bagan Mohun Bagan Super Giant, commonly referred to as Mohun Bagan, is an Indian professional football club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Founded in 1889, it is one of the oldest football clubs in Asia. The club competes in the Indian Super League, ...

. He made his debut for the club in their opening I-League match on 25 November 2017 against

Minerva Punjab Minerva Academy Football Club (often referred to as Minerva Punjab) is an Indian professional multi-sports club based in Mohali/Chandigarh, Punjab (India), Punjab, best known for its association football, football, cricket and futsal teams. Th ...

. He started and played the whole match as Mohun Bagan drew 1–1.

Mohammedan SC

Mohammedan SC (Kolkata) Mohammedan Sporting Club (), commonly referred to as Mohammedan, is an Indian sports club, multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. The club is best known for their professional men's association football, football section which compete ...

signed Shilton D'Silva from Mohun Bagan on January 4, 2021, for I-league season 2020–21.

International

After playing for

U15 against the India U16 side, D'Silva was spotted and selected by Colm Toal to join the India youth set-up. He represented the India U16 side during the

2008 AFC U-16 Championship The 2008 AFC U-16 Championship was the 13th competition of the AFC U-17 Championship organized by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), which was held between 4 and 19 October 2008 in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The AFC U-17 Championship 2008 Qualifi ...

and then participated with the India U19 side during the qualifiers for the

2010 AFC U-19 Championship The 2010 AFC U-19 Championship was the 36th edition of the tournament organized by the Asian Football Confederation. 2010 AFC U-19 Championship qualification, Qualification for the tournament started in October 2009 with the finals tournament be ...

. On 23 February 2011, D'Silva made his debut for the India U23 team against Myanmar U23 during the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

qualifiers. D'Silva then made his debut for the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

senior team on 21 March 2011 against

Chinese Taipei "Chinese Taipei" is the term used in various international organizations and tournaments for groups or delegations representing the Republic of China (ROC), a country commonly known as Taiwan. Due to the One China principle stipulated by the ...

in the

2012 AFC Challenge Cup The 2012 AFC Challenge Cup was the fourth edition of the tournament, an international football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member nations that are mainly categorized as "emerging countries" in the defunct Vision Asia progr ...

qualifiers. He came on a substitute for

Rakesh Masih Rakesh Masih (born 18 March 1987) is an Indian football player who currently plays for Tollygunge Agragami in the Calcutta Football League. Career Masih spent four years at the Tata Football Academy and was regarded as one of the best cadets o ...

as India won 3–0.

Career statistics

Honours

Bengaluru FC * Federation Cup: 2014–15 Mohun Bagan *

: 2019–20 *

Calcutta Football League The Calcutta Football League (CFL) is a ladder-based football competition in the Indian state of West Bengal, organised by the Indian Football Association (WB) as part of the state leagues. It is the oldest football league in Asia. The CFL ...

: 2018–19 *

Sikkim Gold Cup The Sikkim Gold Cup, also known as the All India Governor's Gold Cup, is an Indian football tournament held in Sikkim and organized by the Sikkim Football Association (SFA). Some of the past champions include New Road Team of Nepal Nepa ...

: 2017 Rajasthan United *Baji Rout Cup: 2022

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Silva, Shilton 1992 births Living people Footballers from Mumbai Indian men's footballers Indian Arrows players Bengaluru FC players Mumbai FC players Mohun Bagan Super Giant players Men's association football midfielders I-League players 21st-century Indian sportsmen India men's international footballers India men's youth international footballers Maharashtra football team players Rajasthan United FC players Gokulam Kerala FC players Sportspeople from Mumbai