Kolkata: Former ISL champions Chennaiyin FC has signed six young talents from the AIFF Elite Academy on Tuesday for the upcoming season of the ISL.
The players are- Goalkeeper Samik Mitra (16, West Bengal), defenders Joseph Sanglura (17, Mizoram) and Lalliansanga Renthlei (18, Mizoram), midfielders Zonunmawia (Mizoram) and Bibin Boban (Kerala) and forward Bawlte Rohmingthanga (Mizoram).
In a press release, Vita Dani, the co-owner of the Tamil Nadu franchise said, “Last year we signed five graduates from the AIFF Academy and all five have shown great improvement over the last 12 months with Jerry (Lalrinzuala) and Anirudh (Thapa) also going on to play for the India senior team.”
The youngsters would undoubtedly have a great time at the team as they would get to work with the likes of former English player and highly experienced manager John Gregory. Their time at Chennaiyin would be a huge learning experience for them going ahead into their career. Rubbing shoulders with Indian stars like Jeje Lalpekhlua and Mohammad Rafi to name a few along with some international names like Rafael Augusto, Jaime Gavilian, would teach them a lot about the game which would be invaluable to their development as the future of Indian football.
Sabir Pasha, Chennaiyin FC’s technical director of youth development said, “They are all teenagers but at Chennaiyin FC age has never been a hindrance. The door is open to each one of them to stake a claim for the senior team. Our head coach John Gregory will be following their progress closely.”
Among these six youngsters, the 16-year old Mitra, Joseph Sanglura, Boban and Rohmingthanga have played for many international matches for India at their age-group teams.
Renthlei, the 18-year old defender and midfielder Zonunmawia are currently a part of the Indian U-19 team who are gearing up for the upcoming SAFF Championship and Asian Cup qualifiers.