(Left) Co-owner of Northeast United FC John Abraham, along with his team, celebrates the victory against Kerela Blasters by 1-0 in Guwahati on Monday and (right) Pritam Kumar Singh. (PTI)

Bhubaneswar, Oct. 14: At a time when people are excited about the Indian Super League (ISL) that promises to bring exciting freshness and lots of glamour to the game, few may be aware that it also features a player with a strong Odisha connection.

Pritam Kumar Singh, 18, a footballer who had represented the state at the junior level, is part of the Northeast United Football Club in the ISL.

Pritam, who originally hails from Manipur, was a player of the Sambalpur Football Academy and had represented the team in the I-League second division tournament. The I-League is the country’s primier football competition.

Pritam have been a regular in the senior division football league played in the state. He has been representing Radhagobinda Club of Cuttack in the Football Association of Odisha league matches for the last two years.

Pritam’s coach Raj Shekhar Pradhan, who had trained him during his stint in the under-19 state team, said he was a talented player and an all-rounder who could play in different positions.

“He plays in the centre back position. Besides he is strong on the left side. His meticulous crosses will be great help for the forward line of his team. He is also a natural playmaker,” said Pradhan.

Pritam was the captain of Odisha under-19 team in the BC Roy Trophy in 2012-13. Besides, he had also represented the nation in the same category.

Secretary of Football Association of Odisha (FAO) Sanjay Behera said that Pritam, who joined Sambalpur team in 2010, represented the state before joining Shillong Lajong in his native state.

“He is the only player with an Odisha link to play for one of the teams in the ISL,” Behera said.

His career graph shows that he had been selected for the national under-17 camp. Last October, he had represented India in the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Under-19 Championship (qualifiers) at Doha in Qatar.

Pradhan said that he was impressed at the way Pritam was playing yesterday against Kerala Blasters FC in the ISL.

“He put up a good show in his inaugural appearance in the ISL,” said the coach.

The football fraternity of the state wished him good luck in the tournament and hoped that Odisha football fans will support Pritam and his team in this edition of the ISL.