Balwant Singh

Salgaocar When the season ended, JCT were relegated to the I-League 2nd Division, and Balwant was picked up by goan-based Salgaocar on 8 June 2011 on a two-year deal. He made his club debut while on 21 March 2012 against Neftchi FK in the 2012 AFC Cup when he came on as a 79th-minute substitute for Francis Fernandes as his team drew the match 2–2. He then featured in his 2nd AFC Cup match against Al-Wehdat on 10 April 2012 when Salgaocar lost 1–2. Balwant struggled for the majority of his time at Salgaocar; his first season was blighted by long injury lay-offs while in the second season, he was relegated to play only the local league games in Goa and did not make any I-League appearances.

Churchill Brothers After barely getting any playing time with Salgaocar, Balwant signed for the defending I-League champions Churchill Brothers on 9 July 2013. He made his debut for the club in the league on 5 October 2013 against Mumbai in a game in which he started and played 57 minutes in a 2–0 win. He then scored his first goal for the club five days later on 10 October 2013 against Rangdajied United in the 27th minute to equalise for Churchill Brothers as the match ended 1–1. He scored a brace for Churchill Brothers in the league on 2 November 2013 against United SC to give his team an early lead, however, that lead would not last as the club went on to lose the match 2–3. On 29 April, Balwant was named Indian player of the season for his goal-scoring feat during the season.

Mohun Bagan Balwant was roped in by Mohun Bagan ahead of 5 other clubs who were chasing his signature due to his 17-goal exploits the previous season for the 2014–15 season on a one-year deal. On 15 October 2014, he opened the score as Chennaiyin won 2–1 at Goa in their first Indian Super League match, thus becoming the first Indian to score in the league. Balwant would appear 14 times for the Marco Materazzi managed outfit, helping them reach the semi-finals, where they were beaten over two-legs by southern rivals Kerala Blasters.

Balwant was retained by Chennaiyin for the 2015 season. He picked up an ankle injury during the pre-season training and was consequently ruled out of play for the opener against Bengaluru. On 23 November, it was announced that he returned to training and was available for selection for the next league match against Goa. He scored his first goal for the club against Pune City. In December, he won the Man of the Match award for scoring an equaliser against Kerala Blasters.

ATK Balwant signed with ATK for two seasons in 2018. He was an integral part of the team that became the 2019–20 Indian Super League champions.

East Bengal On 12 April 2020, it was officially announced that Balwant has signed on a 2 years contract with Kolkata Giants East Bengal F.C.

International career Balwant made his international debut for India B on 17 February 2010 against Kyrigyzstan in India's opening match of the 2010 AFC Challenge Cup in which he started and played 79 minutes before being substituted for Jeje Lalpekhlua. Later that year, he made his debut for India at the under-23 level when India took part in the 2010 Asian Games. The match took place on 7 November 2010 against Kuwait in which Singh played the whole match as India's under-23s lost 0–2. Then, later in the tournament, he scored his first ever international goal against Singapore U23s in the 62nd minute as India ran out 4–1 winners. He made his national debut against Mauritius in Hero Tri-Nation Cup and also scored the winning goal. On 5 September Balwant scored a brace which helped them secure a 2–0 win against Macau in the Asian Cup Qualifying.

Career statistics

Club

International Scores and results list India's goal tally first.

No Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref. 1 19 August 2017 Mumbai Football Arena, Mumbai, India 2–1 2–1 2017 Hero Tri-Nation Series 2 3 September 2017 Estádio Campo Desportivo, Taipa, Macau 1–0 2–0 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualification 3 2–0

Honours Salgaocar I-League: 2010–11 Federation Cup: 2011

Churchill Brothers Federation Cup: 2013–14

Mohun Bagan I-League: 2014–15 Federation Cup: 2015–16

Chennaiyin Indian Super League: 2015

ATK Indian Super League: 2019–20

India Tri-Nation Series: 2017 Intercontinental Cup: 2018 King's Cup third place: 2019

India U23 SAFF Championship: 2009

Individual FPAI Indian Player of the Season: 2013–14