Raju Eknath Gaikwad who is also known as Raju Gaiwad is an Indian football player. He is hailing from Mumbai. He plays as a Centre back for East Bengal Football Club in the I- League.

Early Life of Raju Eknath Gaikwad
Raju Eknath Gaikwad was born on 25th September in the year 1990 in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He is an Indian football player, who plays as a centre back for East Bengal Football Club in the I-League. He is also named for Indian national football team in different domestic and international football teams.

Career of Raju Eknath Gaikwad
Raju Eknath Gaikwad began his gaming career from a very early age. After spending much time with Tata Football Academy, Raju Eknath Gaikwad had signed for Pailan Arrows (then AIFF XI) in the I-League.

Raju Eknath Gaikwad made his league debut for Pailan Arrows on 3 December 2010 against Prayag United S.C. at the Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata which was also Pailan Arrows`s first ever game in the I-League; Pailan lost 2-1.

Raju Eknath Gaikwad with East Bengal Football Club
In July 2011, Raju Eknath Gaikwad signed for East Bengal Football Club after one season at Pailan and made his debut for the club on 4th February 2012 after missing the first few months of the season through injury.

Raju Eknath Gaikwad in International Arena
Raju Eknath Gaikwad made his debut for India U23 National Football Team on 23rd February 2011 against Myanmar`s U23s in the 2012 Olympic Qualifiers; India U23 National Football Team won 2-1. He then made his senior debut for India U23 National Football Team on 21 March 2011 in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers against Chinese Tapei at the MBPJ Stadium in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. India U23 National Football Team won 3-0. Raju Gaikwad then won his first championship with India U23 National Football Team on 11th December 2011 when he helped India U23 National Football Team beat Afghanistan Football team in the 2011 SAFF Cup.

Raju Gaikwad then went on to lead India U23 National Football Team to win the 2012 Nehru Cup when India U23 National Football Team managed to beat Cameroon`s B team on 2nd September 2012 at the Nehru Stadium in Delhi.