BENGALURU: Mandar Tamhane, the Bengaluru FC chief technical officer, remembers the phone call from Ashley Westwood well. This was in 2014. His office overlooked the Bangalore Football Stadium where BFC were playing a practice game against the Tata Football Academy. Westwood, then manager, was on the touchline.

"I was sitting here (in my office) and Ashley was at the game. Nine minutes into the game, I get a call from Ashley saying we have to sign him now," he remembers. The club had played the friendly to see Udanta Singh up close. After all, how many 18-year-old prancing right wingers get signed up under the manager’s insistence midway through a friendly? There is a famous one of course, but not many.

Four years on, the 21-year-old is the next big thing of Indian football. He had shown signs of his ability for club and country - the solo run and assist for the late winner against Myanmar stands out - before but this season, Udanta has turned himself into a more rounded player. He reads better, uses his body and speed more efficiently and has added consistency. All things his club expected from him when they decided to retain him, alongside Sunil Chhetri , ahead of the Indian Super League draft.

As part of the attacking trio comprising Miku and Chhetri, his return of five assists and one goal in the league pales in comparison with the other two. But for Udanta, who provides the width for BFC, it was a season where he needed to step up. To go up another level in his development. His return of 37 tackles, 11 interceptions and 14 blocks, all without picking up a card, shows that he has, in both facets of the game, despite the steep learning curve.

"I've not been among the goals but it's been a great season because I've been playing with guys like Miku and Chhetri. They help a lot," he says. "Chhetri has been someone who took me under his wings since the beginning. It's a pleasure to play with Miku. He is so clinical and that makes me want to work harder to send the right crosses in.

Chhetri, however, feels he can do more.

"I still think he is underachieving. He is (Mo) Salah without the goals right now. I've told him that," says Chhetri. "You're dominating defenders, opening games but you're not scoring enough. You have that speed, you have to make it count. Once he starts taking shots, he will be a proper weapon."

The captain spoke those fateful words before their second match against Kerala Blasters. Udanta took a shot in that match, cutting inside and firing rather uncharacteristically, and scored. He followed that up with a dominant show against FC Pune City in the second leg, set up the first goal for Chettri's hat-trick as well.

And as the final approaches, Udanta has just one thought. "The expectation is to win and the fact that we are going to be playing in front of the home crowd is something we want to take advantage of. We've done so well that the only fitting reward would be to go and win it," he says.

Udanta is stepping up. He is primed to be the ‘weapon' his team wants him to be.

