Mahesh Gawli

Mahesh Gawli

Personal information
Full name	Mahesh Gawli
Date of birth	23 January 1980 (1980-01-23) (age 31)
Place of birth	Goa, India
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Club information
Current club	Dempo
Number	28
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2000–2003	Churchill Brothers	45	(0)
2003–2005	East Bengal	32	(0)
2005–2006	Mahindra United	11	(0)
2007–	Dempo	81	(0)
National team
1997–	India	77	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Mahesh Gawli (born on 23 January 1980 in Goa) is an Indian footballer. Gawli began playing football at the age of eight as a holding midfielder for Assumpta High School

Early days

He was selected for the Goa U-12 side that beat Japan U-12 side at home. Thereafter he was selected for SAI camp at Gandhinagar but he opted to join Goa for further training.He was trained by Mr.I.P.Nagi S.A.I Football Coach at S.P.D.A Center,Margao Goa from 1991 till he joined TATA Football Academy . In real sense it was Mr. Nagi who developed a real sense of football in Mahesh .He was selected by Mr. Ranjan Chaudhry the head Coach of T.F.A for further training at TATA Football Academy Jamshedpur with other footballer of S.P.D.A Rockey Baretto.Before this he was getting all the facilities which includes coaching under the expertise of Mr.I.P.Nagi, free boarding, free lodging, schooling and medical facilities at Sports Authority Of India,s S.P.D.A Centre at Margao,Goa .This was eagel eye of Mr.Nagi who assessed the playing sense and capabilities of Mahesh and allocated him the Stopper Back Position . At T.F.A his skilled were polished and with the physical development he was groomed as a good player.

Club career

A Tata Football Academy graduate, Mahesh Gawli, made his international debut even before he signed for a club at the age of 17 back in 1997. Thirteen years on, he is still considered to be one of the best defenders in the country. Gawli did well even at youth level for India right from the Under-16 level, getting included in the Asian Under-16 All Stars. After graduating from the TFA Academy he joined FC Kochin and spent two years there before signing for Goan giants Churchill Brothers.

He won three consecutive Goa league titles with Churchill and also helped them finish in the top three twice. His dream of winning the National League was fulfilled in the 2003-04 season when he played for East Bengal. Gawli helped the red and gold brigade win the treble as they also won the Kolkata League and ASEAN trophy. After spending two years in Kolkata, Gawli joined Mahindra.

The Goan was at his peak while playing for Mahindra as he won the Best Defender award thrice in a row and won several trophies - the IFA Shield, NFL, Federation Cup, Mumbai League (twice) and entered the AFC Cup quarters. He then joined Dempo and helped them win the inaugural I-League and reach the semis of the AFC Cup. Despite being mostly injured last season, he still played a key role in Dempo's fourth league title triumph.

He has been a mainstay in the national team for more than a decade now. In national team colours Gawli has won the AFC Challenge Cup, 2 Nehru Cups, LG Cup and the SAFF Cup. All his life he has mainly played as a central defender but now in the national team he is being used as a left fullback, with Bob Houghton even saying once that Gawli could have been one of the best right fullbacks of Asia had he played in that position earlier in his career.

International career

Mahesh has been representing India since 1997. He currently plays as center-back. With India he won LG Cup, several SAFF Cups. He was part of the historical Nehru Cup International Football Tournament 2007 win in which he was the man of the match in the final against Syria. He was also an important part of the victorious India team at the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup. Mahesh is the only Indian player known to be named in Asian All Star U-16 team.

International goals

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	10 December 2005	Karachi, Pakistan	Bhutan	2-0	3-0	2005 SAFF Cup

External links

• Mahesh Gawli at National-Football-Teams.com
• Mahesh Gawli – FIFA competition record
• http://the-aiff.com/pages/team/players.php?plyrId=116

Persondata
Name	Gawli, Mahesh
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	23 January 1980
Place of birth	Panzorconi, India
Date of death
Place of death