ATK Mohun Bagan FC have signed Spanish midfielder Javier Hernandez on a one-year deal, the club announced on Wednesday. Hernandez was part of the erstwhile ATK FC side that secured their third Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) trophy during the 2019-20 season.

“I am extremely delighted to stay with ATK Mohun Bagan FC. I cannot wait to meet my teammates and the new boys who have joined this season. Kolkata holds a special place in my heart. The club has given great memories and the fans have shown me so much affection. We would like to perform well in the AFC Cup while representing the Green and Maroon. Our aim is to attain glory once again this year,” the Spaniard said after signing his contract.

A native of Salamanca in Spain, Hernandez began his youth career at local outfit UD Salamanca before joining the Real Madrid youth system (Real Castilla). He made 34 appearances for Real Madrid’s reserve team, spending a season on loan in Sweden with Halmstads BK. During his time with Los Blancos, Hernandez played for Spain at youth level.

He returned to boyhood club Salamanca, and after turning out for a couple of clubs in the lower divisions of Spanish football, Hernandez joined Romanian club Poli Timisoara. This was followed by stints in Poland with Gornik Leczna in 2016 and in Azerbaijan with FK Qabala in 2017, where he played in the second round of UEFA Europa League Qualifiers for the latter. Hernandez then joined Polish top division club KS Cracovia, playing 65 times over two seasons while scoring 15 goals and bagging nine assists.

The midfielder played 20 matches in the last Hero ISL season, scoring both his goals in the final against Chennaiyin FC besides also bagging five assists during the course of the campaign. Ahead of the 2020-21 season, ATK Mohun Bagan FC has signed several players from ATK’s title-winning team. A few other notable new signings include defenders Sandesh Jhingan, Tiri and Subhasish Bose, midfielders Bradden Inman and Sheikh Sahil and forward Manvir Singh