| Rahul Raju | |
| Birth Date: | 20 November 2003[1] |
| Height: | 1.74 m |
| Currentclub: | Gokulam Kerala |
| Clubnumber: | 8 |
| Position: | Striker, Winger, Midfielder |
| Youthclubs1: | United Kochin FC |
| Youthyears1: | 2019–2020 |
| Youthclubs2: | SB FA Poovar |
| Youthyears2: | 2020–2021 |
| Years1: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs1: | Bengaluru B |
| Caps1: | 7 |
| Goals1: | 7 |
| Years2: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs2: | Bengaluru |
| Caps2: | 0 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs3: | → Gokulam Kerala (loan) |
| Caps3: | 19 |
| Goals3: | 1 |
| Years4: | 2023- |
| Clubs4: | Gokulam Kerala |
| Caps4: | 0 |
| Goals4: | 0 |
| Years5: | 2023-2024 |
| Clubs5: | →Churchill Brothers(loan) |
| Caps5: | 2 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Club-Update: | 23:33, 12 March 2023 (UTC) |
| Birth Place: | Kulathoor, Kerala, India |
Rahul Raju (born 20 November 2003) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a forward for I-League club Gokulam Kerala.
Born in the football frenzy state of Kerala, Rahul Raju started his career at an early age with the local clubs United Kochin FC and, later, SB FA Poovar of Thiruvananthapuram. He then caught the attention of Bengaluru FC scouts and was roped in by the club for their reserves side in 2021.[2] [3]
Rahul Raju began his senior career at the fourth-tier football of India with Bengaluru FC B[2] [3] at the 2021–22 season of BDFA Super Division. He scored five goals for the club and had one assist to his name.[4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
The reserves side of Bengaluru FC participated in the maiden season of Reliance Foundation Development League in 2022 and it was a tournament to remember for the then-eighteen-year-old as he went on to secure the golden boot in the tournament with seven goals in seven games for the club who became the league premiers.[10] [11] [12] [13]
After tasting success with Bengaluru FC B, Rahul Raju was loaned out for a season, back to his home state of Kerala but this time to the northern part of the state where the I-League club Gokulam Kerala FC is based.[2] [3] Rahul Raju started for the club fifteen times and found back of the net once in the 2022–23 I-League season.[14] [15] [16]
| Club | Season | League | League Cup | Domestic Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Bengaluru B | 2022 | RF Development League | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 7 | |||
| Gokulam Kerala (loan) | 2022–23 | I-League | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 1 | |||
| Gokulam Kerala | 2023–24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | |||
| Career total | 26 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 8 | |||
Bengaluru FC B
Individual