Congratulations to Nishan Velupillay for his recent selection in the Australia U23 squad and reaching 50 Aleague matches with MVFC.
Nishan Velupillay spent 5 years developing his game at FTS, from 12 to 16 years of age.
In Australia we are always talking about needing to develop players with an ‘X’ factor, well Nishan is exactly that. He is an ‘excitement machine’. As the young players at FTS would say, Nishan has ‘magic’ feet.
Arriving as a young 12 year old, Nishan fitted in perfectly, he was focused, respectful and open to learning. He was typically shy when speaking with the coaches. On the field, he had very nice feet, demonstrated a good understanding of the game and liked to take risks.
Nishan was very hungry to improve, his mind was open to feedback and learning.
Important to note that Nishan was a late developer, particularly at 13-15 years of age. It wasn’t until 15-16 years of age that his body developed physically to gain equal standing with his peers.
As a footballer, you would say Nishan is a magician with the ball, he is incredibly deceptive and effective with the ball at his feet. He is innovative and creative, plays with his head up and finds so many ways to play forward, whether its breaking lines, going past a player in a 1v1 situation or playing clever well timed forward passes. He is a genuine attacking weapon and very exciting to watch.
Due to his mentality, physical development, intelligence, technical abilities and attacking weapons, Nishan successfully made the jump from youth to senior professional football via Melbourne Victory FC.
This week Nishan scored in his 50th senior professional appearance for Melbourne Victory in the A-League.
Nishan was also recently selected in the Australian U23 National Team.
Nishan is a top young guy from a warm and supportive family.
Nishan is a wonderful role model to young players at FTS.
To Nishan, everyone here at FTS is behind you and looking forward to watching your professional career evolve. Goodluck!