Lalrindika Ralte

Lalrindika Ralte (born 7 September 1992 in Lunglei, Mizoram), popularly known as Dika, is a former Indian professional footballer who last played as an attacking midfielder for Real Kashmir in the I-League.

Lalrindika Ralte
Dika with East Bengal FC in 2019
Personal information
Full name Lalrindika Ralte
Date of birth (1992-09-07) 7 September 1992
Place of birth Lunglei, Mizoram, India
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
2004-2009 IFA Academy
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2012 Churchill Brothers 18 (7)
2010–2011 → Pailan Arrows (loan) 7 (3)
2012–2017 East Bengal 90 (18)
2014 → Mumbai City (loan) 14 (1)
2015 → Mumbai City (loan) 0 (0)
2016 → Atlético Kolkata (loan) 13 (1)
2017–2018 NorthEast United 12 (0)
2018–2020 East Bengal 42 (4)
2021 Real Kashmir 10 (1)
Total 205 (35)
International career‡
2007–2008 India U16 7 (3)
2009 India U19 5 (2)
2011–2014 India U23 9 (1)
2011–2022 India 16 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 March 2021
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 16:49, 17 March 2015 (UTC)

Born in a small town in Mizoram he started playing football at a very young age. During his playing career he has been regarded as one of the most talented footballers of the country in recent times with a brilliant left-foot and also a specialist in set pieces. Often a fan favourite among the Red and Golds for his genius understanding of the game and spectacular goals.[1]

Career

Churchill Brothers and Pailan Arrows

Ralte started his career at Churchill Brothers in 2009 and scored his first professional goal for the club on 1 April 2010 against JCT in the I-League in a 6–0 win.[2] Ralte signed for Pailan Arrows on a season-long loan for the 2010–11 season. He scored his first goal for the Arrows on 3 December 2010 against Prayag United in Arrows' first ever professional match in the I-League.[3] Ralte then scored a brace for the Arrows on 7 May 2011 against Mumbai to help Arrows win 2–1.[4]

Ralte moved back to Churchill for the 2011-12 I-League after his year-long loan and on 1 November 2011, scored his first goal since his return against Prayag United at the Fatorda Stadium to help Churchill draw the match 1–1 in the I-League.[5] He then scored again on 17 December 2011 against Shillong Lajong in the I-League to help Churchill to a 6–0 win.[6] He would then score on 15 January 2012 against Mohun Bagan in the I-League in a 2–3 loss.[7] while he continued to play regular football and impressed, he did not score again until 1 April 2012, when he scored against Prayag United at the Fatorda Stadium again in a 5–2 victory.[8] He scored his 5th goal of the season 15 days later on 15 April 2012 against Pune in a 2–0 away victory.[9] He then scored his last goal of the season on 6 May 2012 against his former club, Pailan Arrows, in the 50th minute in a match that ended 3–2 in favor of his team.[10]

East Bengal

Dika's signed for East Bengal in May 2012 and made his debut for the club on 21 September 2012 against Sporting Goa in the first match of the 2012 Federation Cup, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute for Ishfaq Ahmed.[11] It did not take him long to make a huge contribution to the team as he scored the solitary goal in the semi-final of the Federation Cup on 27 September 2012 against his former team, Churchill Brothers, in the 111th minute of extra-time to send them into the final, which East Bengal would eventually go onto win 3–2 over Dempo in Siliguri.[12] He then scored his first I-League goal for East Bengal in the second match of the season on 11 October 2012 against United Sikkim at the Paljor Stadium in Gangtok from an 82nd-minute free kick in a 1–0 win.[13] He scored his second goal for the club on 24 November 2012 against ONGC at the Salt Lake Stadium in a convincing 5–0 win.[14] On 27 February 2013, he scored his first goal in continental competitions in the 2013 AFC Cup against Selangor FA in a 1–0 home win for East Bengal; a left footed striker from outside the box, beating the Malaysian goalkeeper Norazlan Razali on the 43rd minute.[15] On 9 April 2013, he scored a 25-yard long curling left-footer on the 86th minute to secure a 2–1 home win over Tampines Rovers FC in the AFC Cup group stage.[16] Ralte then would score his fourth goal of the AFC Cup against Kuwait SC on 1 October 2013 in the away leg of the 2013 AFC Cup semi-final match with a right-footed shot from the left of the box.[17] With the goal against Kuwait SC, he became the joint highest Indian scorer of the tournament with Bhaichung Bhutia.

Mumbai City(loan)

Ralte was picked up by Mumbai City on loan for the 2014 Indian Super League as one of the most expensive signings.[18] He started in Mumbai City FC's first ever game against Atletico de Kolkata. He assisted teammate Andre Moritz twice in a 5–0 win over derby rivals FC Pune City.[19] Dika scored his first goal for Mumbai City on 7 December 2014 against Atletico de Kolkata in a 2–1 win.[20]

Return to East Bengal

In 2018 July, East Bengal announced the return of Didika before the Calcutta Football League. He came on as a substitute in the Kolkata Derby when East Bengal was trailing by 2 goals against Mohun Bagan and changed the whole equation also providing the assist for the equaliser where the game ended 2-2. He was appointed as the captain. He led his team to the runners-up spot missing the I-League championship just by a point to Chennai City in the 2018-19 season which was decided on the final day.
He joined Real Kashmir in 2021 January for a one year long deal.

Retirement

On 21 February 2022, Ralte announced a shocking retirement at the age of 29 through a social media post owing to personal and family reasons.[21]

International

Ralte has played for India at the under-16, under-19, under-23, and senior levels. He made his under-16 debut on 27 October 2007 during the 2008 AFC U-16 qualifiers against Sri Lanka in which India's under-16s won 6–0.[22] He then scored his first goal at that level on 4 November 2007 during the qualifiers against Saudi Arabia in the 65th minute to provide India's under-16s a 3–0 win.[23] Ralte then scored a brace for the India under-16s on 4 October 2008 against South Korea in the opening match of the 2008 AFC U-16 Championship but he could not stop India losing in the end 5–2.[24] Ralte then made his under-19 debut on 5 November 2009 against Iraq during the 2010 AFC U-19 Qualifiers in which India's under-19s lost 5–0.[25] Ralte then scored a brace for India's under-19s on 10 November 2009 against Oman in the U19 qualifiers in which Ralte scored in the 15th and 19th minute but could not stop India losing 4–3 in the end.[26] Then on 23 February 2011 Ralte made his debut for the under-23 side against Myanmar in the 2012 Olympic qualifiers in which India U23s won 2–1.[27] Ralte then scored his first goal at the under-23 level on 30 June 2012 during the 2013 AFC U-22 Asian Cup qualifiers against Turkmenistan in which Ralte scored from a 36th-minute penalty to give India U23s a 4–1 victory.[28]

Ralte made his debut for the senior side on 10 July 2011 against Maldives in a friendly in which he came on as a sub for Syed Nabi; India drew the match 1–1.[29] Ralte then made his tournament debut for India during the opening match of the 2011 SAFF Championship on 3 December 2011 against Afghanistan at the Nehru Stadium in Delhi; India drew 1–1 in that match.[30]

Career statistics

Club

Statistics accurate as of 25 March 2021[31] [32]

Club Season League Federation Cup CFL Premier A Domestic Cups [lower-alpha 1] AFC Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoals Apps GoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Churchill Brothers 2009–10 I-League4100 — —005091
2011–12 I-League14630 — —2100197
Total 18730 0 02150288
Pailan Arrows (loan) 2010–11 I-League7300 — —000073
Total 7300 0 0000073
East Bengal 2012–13 I-League 21 5 4 1 11 3 4 0 7 3 47 12
2013–14 I-League22430624141398
2014–15 I-League7040————10120
2015–16 I-League2021————0041
2016–17 I-League1312083——00234
Total 6510152 25 88[lower-alpha 2]112412525
Mumbai City (loan) 2014 Indian Super League141—— — —————141
Total 14100 0 00000141
Atlético Kolkata (loan) 2016 Indian Super League131—— — —————131
Total 13100 0 00000131
North East United 2017-18 Indian Super League 12 0 1 0 — — — — — — 13 0
Total 12 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 13 0
East Bengal 2018-19 I-League 18 1 — — 7 1 — — — — 25 2
2019-20 I-League 9 1 0 0 8 1 3 0 0 0 20 2
Total 27 2 0 0 15 2 3 0 0 0 45 4
Real Kashmir 2020-21 I-League 10 1 — — — — — — — — 10 1
Career total 16625192 40 1013217425543
Notes
  1. Durand Cup
  2. Appearances in IFA Shield

National team statistics

[33] Statistics accurate as of 17 March 2015

India national team
YearAppsGoals
201190
201210
201320
201520
Total140

Honours

India

Churchill Brothers

East Bengal

Atletico de Kolkata

References
  1. "Lalrindika Ralte - the Young Star of Mumbai". Red Bull.
  2. "CHURCHILL BROTHERS VS. JCT FC 6 – 0". Soccerway. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  3. "PRAYAG UNITED VS. ARROWS 2 – 1". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  4. "MUMBAI VS. ARROWS 1 – 2 Summary". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  5. "PRAYAG UNITED VS. CHURCHILL BROTHERS 1 – 1". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  6. "CHURCHILL BROTHERS VS. SHILLONG LAJONG 6 – 0". Soccerway. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  7. "CHURCHILL BROTHERS VS. MOHUN BAGAN 2 – 3 Summary". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 28 January 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  8. "CHURCHILL BROTHERS VS. PRAYAG UNITED 5 – 2". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  9. "PUNE VS. CHURCHILL BROTHERS 0 – 2". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 2 June 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  10. "CHURCHILL BROTHERS VS. ARROWS 3 – 2". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 27 May 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  11. "Sporting Clube de Goa vs East Bengal LIVE Commentary". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 30 October 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  12. Noronha, Anselm. "Churchill Brothers SC 0–1 East Bengal: A late Ralte strike sends Subhas Bhowmick's side packing". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  13. Vaz, John. "United Sikkim 0–1 East Bengal: Late Ralte goal seals three points for the away side". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 19 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  14. Bera, Kaustav. "East Bengal 5–0 ONGC FC: Morgan's side demolish the Oilmen". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 28 November 2012. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
  15. "Report: East Bengal 1-0 Selangor FA - Goal.com". Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  16. "AFC Cup: East Bengal 2-1 Tampines Rovers – Kolkata club have one foot in the round of 16 | Sportskeeda". Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2013.
  17. Mitra, Atanu. "Kuwait SC 4–2 East Bengal: Late flourish by Marcos Falopa's side leaves the tie interestingly poised". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2013.
  18. "Lalrindika Ralte - Midfielder, Mumbai City FC | ISL Player Profile". Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  19. "The official site of Hero Indian Super League | Matchcentre". Archived from the original on 21 October 2014. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  20. "ISL: Mumbai's Ralte rattles Athletico de Kolkata". Archived from the original on 29 April 2015. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
  21. "Want to keep working for Mizoram and Indian Football: Lalrindika Ralte". 13 February 2022.
  22. "INDIA U16 6–0 Sri Lanka U16". Indian Football. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  23. "INDIA U16 4–0 BHUTAN U16". Indian Football. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2012.
  24. "Korea Republic U16 5–2 India U16" (PDF). The Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 May 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  25. "Iraq U19 5–0 India U19". The Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  26. "India U19 3–4 Oman U19". The Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 5 January 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  27. "India U23 2–1 Myanmar U23". The Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  28. "India U23 4–1 Turkmenistan U23". The Asian Football Confederation. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  29. "Indian National Team Friendly: Maldives 1–1 India – Armando Colaco's Debut Ends In A Draw". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2013. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  30. "India vs Afghanistan LIVE Commentary". Goal.com. Archived from the original on 7 January 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
  31. "Lalrindika Ralte - Profile and Statistics - SoccerPunter.com". Archived from the original on 5 February 2015. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
  32. Lalrindika Ralte at Soccerway
  33. "India - L. Ralte - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 20 February 2018.
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