I will forever remember this and hope to win more in the future: East Bengal's Soumya
East Bengal FC striker Soumya Guguloth believes that winning the 2025 AIFF Women's Player of the Year award is a reward for all her efforts to rise through the ranks so far.
'After so many years of hard work and having dealt with injuries, it's good to get my hands on this award. It is my first individual award. I will forever remember this and I hope to win many more in the future,' Soumya told The Hindu.
With nine goals, Soumya was the third-highest goal scorer in the recently concluded edition of the IWL, an achievement she looks back on proudly.
AIFF 2024-25 Awards function
Men's player of the year: Subhasish Bose
Women's player of the year: Soumya Guguloth
Men's coach of the year: Khalid Jamil
Women's coach of the year: Sujata Kar
All award winners ▶️ https://t.co/RinOz0WKi2#IndianFootball | #ISL | #IWLpic.twitter.com/xL8huE1qX1 — Sportstar (@sportstarweb) May 2, 2025
'It felt very good to secure the title for East Bengal. It also feels good that a girl from Telangana has scored the goals to help the team secure the win,' the 23-year-old remarked.
The Nizamabad native's 67th-minute strike against defending champion Odisha FC in the penultimate match of the season helped the Kolkata giant clinch the crown, a goal she picked out as her favourite moment of the campaign.
'The goal that helped East Bengal become the champion stands out for me. If we had drawn that, it would have been difficult for us as we were set to play Gokulam Kerala in the final match,' she said.
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