Othallo Tabia has extended his stay at Pune Football Club after the defender has put pen to a new two year deal with the I-League debutants last day.
The 25 year old defender had joined Pune FC in 2008 after a one year stint with Viva Kerala during the 2007-08 season. He helped Pune FC to qualify for the I-League last season and has been crucial in coach Derrick Pereira’s plans for this season.
“I am very happy here at Pune. So, I need not go anywhere else,” Othallo whose new contract will keep him with Pune FC till 2012 said in a phone conversation with FootballKerala.com.
Pune FC now have 38 points from 24 matches and are sitting pretty at the top half of the table. That normally is a very good record for a club that is playing their first season in the top division, but the Pune FC management wants more of success it seems.
Othallo Tabia revealed that the team management has promised a bonus of 1 lakh for each player if the team manages to finish second in the league this season. “All the players are excited at the moment and we will be trying to claim the second spot,” said an excited Othallo himself.
Pune FC has 2 more matches left in the ONGC I-League 2009-10 and Othallo feels that second position will be theirs if they win their remaining matches.
Othallo who started his career with Travancore Titanium had spent 3 years with Mahindra United before joining Viva. He also won most of the major titles with Mahindra United.
From the archive. First published on footballkerala.com on Wednesday 12 May 2010, restored from the site's 2012 database. Text as originally published.