Mohammed Sanan has officially signed a three-year contract with Kerala Blasters FC, keeping him at the club until 2029. The young winger will receive a base salary of ₹75 lakh for the inaugural 2026–27 season, with his contract featuring a performance or tenure-based clause that will increase his salary by a fixed percentage in each of the subsequent two seasons. The deal marks one of the first major domestic signings of the Al Fursan era and signals the club’s new financial strategy under the UAE-based ownership. Watch Video
The move required a multi-party arrangement to complete. Because Sanan had previously extended his contract with Jamshedpur FC until May 2028, his departure needed a settlement. The Tata Group agreed to pay approximately ₹80 lakh directly to Sanan, effectively settling the financial obligations of the remaining two years on his previous Jamshedpur deal. This payout cleared him to join Kerala Blasters on a fresh contract, with the Tata Group also helping resolve financial restructuring following changes surrounding Jamshedpur FC’s operations.
What makes this signing remarkable is what Sanan turned down to make it happen. The winger explicitly snubbed interest from Mohun Bagan Super Giant and other Kolkata heavyweights like East Bengal to force through his move to Kerala Blasters. Top journalists, including Marcus Mergulhao, confirmed that Sanan refused to join any of the Kolkata clubs, even as both Mohun Bagan and East Bengal made aggressive plays and put lucrative contract offers on the table. Instead, Sanan intentionally placed those offers on hold, choosing to wait out the administrative transition at Kerala Blasters so he could prioritize playing for his home state team.
For Sanan, a native of Malappuram, the decision was deeply personal. Despite receiving financially competitive, matching offers from multiple major ISL clubs, he delayed his decision to sign with the Blasters, driven heavily by the desire to play for his home state. This multi-party arrangement allowed KBFC’s new ownership to land one of India’s brightest young wingers as the marquee domestic face of their new era, and for Sanan himself, it represents a homecoming that no amount of money from Kolkata could match.