ISL 2020-21: Jamshedpur FC youngsters need to prove their mettle this season

Jamshedpur FC have shown immense faith on young footballers since their inception in the 2017-18 season. They have always had talented young Indian players on their roster.

In the first two seasons, we saw players like Jerry Mawihmingthanga, Farukh Chowdhury and Michael Soosairaj blossoming in the Jamshedpur shirt and making a name for themselves in Indian football. Last season, the club had four Indian players from the U-17 World Cup in Narender Gahlot, Amarjit Singh Kiyam, Jitendra Singh and Aniket Jadhav.

They were also instrumental in promoting youngsters from their youth team like midfielder Mobashir Rahman and left-back Sandip Mandi. The domestic player recruitment indicated that the club envisioned in building a strong Indian squad for future.

The first season with so many young Indian players on their roster was always going to be tough. Jamshedpur had their worst possible season out of the first three as they finished on the eighth position on the league table. However, it must be noted that there were periods when they looked like play-off contenders but injuries meant that they could not sustain their levels throughout the season.  

ISL

Players like Narender Gahlot, Mobashir Rahman, Jitendra Singh and Aniket Jadhav got the maximum game time amongst the youngsters under former coach Antonio Iriondo. All of these players contributed in bits and pieces but it is time for them to step up and show consistency. 

Former India U17 skipper Amarjit Singh was one of the standout recruits among the young brigade. He started 2019 with a bang after making his national team debut at the age of 18 under Igor Stimac at the King's Cup. Unfortunately for the player as well as for Jamshedpur, he broke his arm in the national team camp ahead of India’s World Cup qualifiers and that kept him out of action for the majority of the 2019-20 ISL season.

ISL

It was only in January that Singh returned to action and appeared in the final eight matches of Jamshedpur FC.

While the debut season was always going to be tough for the teenagers at the highest level, they must push themselves harder this season and try to prove their mettle for the team as well as for their own career growth.

Having a coach like Owen Coyle will help in their development. The coach is known for trusting young players and helping them grow. The likes of Daniel Sturridge and Jack Wilshere have all benefitted from Coyle's guidance. Last season, we saw that with Lallianzuala Chhangte and Anirudh Thapa at Chennaiyin FC.

Jamshedpur's youngsters have a dependable guide in their coach. Now, it is all about stepping up.