| Nandhakumar Sekar | |
| Fullname: | Nandhakumar Sekar |
| Birth Date: | 20 December 1995 |
| Birth Place: | Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Height: | 1.73 m |
| Position: | Winger |
| Currentclub: | East Bengal |
| Clubnumber: | 11 |
| Youthyears1: | 2014–2017 |
| Youthclubs1: | Hindustan Eagles |
| Years1: | 2017–2018 |
| Clubs1: | Chennai City |
| Caps1: | 6 |
| Goals1: | 2 |
| Years2: | 2017–2018 |
| Clubs2: | → Odisha (loan) |
| Caps2: | 9 |
| Goals2: | 1 |
| Years3: | 2018–2023 |
| Clubs3: | Odisha |
| Caps3: | 82 |
| Goals3: | 10 |
| Years4: | 2023– |
| Clubs4: | East Bengal |
| Caps4: | 19 |
| Goals4: | 5 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2017–2018 |
| Nationalteam1: | India U23 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 5 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2023– |
| Nationalteam2: | India |
| Nationalcaps2: | 6 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Club-Update: | 16:37, 1 June 2024 (UTC) |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 14:50, 9 September 2024 (UTC) |
Nandhakumar Sekar (born 20 December 1995) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Indian Super League club East Bengal and the India national team.
Sekar made his professional debut in the I-League with Chennai City on 19 February 2017 against Shillong Lajong. He started the match and played 51 minutes as Chennai City lost 4–1.[1] He scored his first professional goal for the club on 12 March 2017 against East Bengal. He scored the equalizing goal for Chennai City in the 57th minute which eventually led to the team winning 2–1.[2] [3]
On 17 August 2022, Sekar scored a stunning goal assisted by goalkeeper Lalthuammawia Ralte in the season opener against NorthEast United in the Durand Cup, which ended in a thumping 6–0 win.[4] [5]
On 10 June 2023, it was announced that Sekar joined East Bengal on a three-year contract.[6]
He made his international debut for Indian U23 national team in a friendly against Singapore U23.
After his successful domestic spell with Odisha, Sekar was called up to senior national team in May 2023, for Hero Intercontinental Cup and SAFF Championship.[7] [8] Sekar made his debut for the senior team against Vanuatu on 12 June 2023.[9]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | AFC | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Chennai City | 2016–17 | I-League | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 2 | |||
| Odisha (loan) | 2017–18 | Indian Super League | 9 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 1 | |||
| Odisha | 2018–19 | 14 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 17 | 3 | ||||
| 2019–20 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | |||||
| 2020–21 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 0 | |||||
| 2021–22 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 1 | |||||
| 20 | 6 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 31 | 11 | |||||
| Odisha total | 82 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 97 | 16 | |||
| East Bengal | 2023–24 | Indian Super League | 19 | 5 | 11 | 4 | — | 1 | 1 | 31 | 10 | ||
| 2024–25 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | |||
| East Bengal total | 19 | 5 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 33 | 11 | |||
| Career total | 107 | 17 | 24 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 140 | 29 | |||
| + Appearances and goals by national team and year | ||||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| India | 2023 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 6 | 0 | ||
Hindustan Eagles
2014–15[10]
Odisha
East Bengal
India
Individual