I-League Stats: Which goalkeeper has kept the maximum clean sheets?

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

While foreigners tend to dominate the I-League, the goalkeeping position remains solely a competition between Indian players as we rarely see foreign custodians. I-League debutants United Sikkim started the season with South Korean keeper Yoon Tae, but he left in the winter window so once again all the clubs have only Indian shot stoppers.

So, we here at Sportskeeda decide to find out which keeper has the maximum clean sheets so far. Anyone who has been following the I-League this season won’t be surprised to know that Indian national team first choice goalkeeper Subrata Pal, who plays for Prayag United, is not even among the top five in this category as he has only managed to keep two clean sheets in 13 starts.

Subrata has also lost his place in the starting eleven to Sangram Mukherjee, although he started Prayag’s last I-League fixture due to an injury to Sangram. Dempo goalkeeper Subhasish Roychowdhury, who is also a regular member of the India senior squad, also fails to make the top five despite keeping five clean sheets in 17 starts.

So who will then top this category? Here is the top five in descending order.

5. TP Rehnesh (ONGC) (6)

The former United Kerala custodian wasn’t a regular at the start of the season but made his first appearance in the 4-1 defeat to Pailan Arrows, a game in which he replaced Prosenjit Ghosh who was sent off. Rehnesh’s first clean sheet came in the goalless draw against Salgaocar in Subrata Bhattacharya’s last match as ONGC coach. Rehnesh has been very consistent under Santosh Kashyap and has played a key role in ONGC’s rise in the table, keeping five more clean sheets including three straight shutouts in January. ONGC have been a very well organised team since the turn of the year and Rehnesh, who turned only 20 in February, has benefited from it. The youngster has a big future ahead of him and could play for a bigger club next season, but for now he would hope to not concede in the final two matches of this season.

4. Abhijit Mondal (East Bengal) (6)

The 35-year-old is ahead of Rehnesh because he has managed the six clean sheets in three fewer starts. With East Bengal having the best defensive record in the I-League, it is not a surprise at all to see Abhijit in the top five. The former Dempo man is often very unorthodox with his catching and punching but has good reflexes. Being vastly experienced, Abhijit makes the right decisions in difficult situations and has produced some key saves for the Kolkata club this season. He has also faced some stiff competition from young Gurpreet Sandhu, having lost his place in the team midway through the season but has regained his spot in the starting lineup following Gurpreet’s costly error and misbehaviour in the Prayag United fixture two weeks ago. Abhijit could very well start the final three games of the season and would be determined to keep a clean sheet in each of them.

3. Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (East Bengal) (8)

Gurpreet Singh Sandhu

Like Abhijit, the 21-year-old has also profited from East Bengal’s superb defensive record and has managed to register a career-high eight clean sheets. Two of those shutouts were in games in which he replaced Abhijit but that shouldn’t take away any credit from Gurpreet, who despite the recent controversy has played an important role in East Bengal’s title challenge. His performance in the 3-0 win over Churchill Brothers in Goa has the been the best so far in the I-League but he has also contributed in other competitions, having kept two clean sheets in as many games in the AFC Cup. And no East Bengal fan would forget his contribution in the penalty shootout success over Mohun Bagan in the IFA Shield semi-final. A moment of madness both off and on the pitch shouldn’t change the fact that Gurpreet has been one of the best goalkeepers of this I-League and is certain to be on top of this list in future campaigns.

2. Karanjit Singh (Salgaocar) (9)

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

The Punjabi custodian was by far the best goalkeeper of the last two seasons and this term also he has been very consistent despite his club’s underachievement. Salgaocar have spent most of the season in the bottom half of the table but Karanjit has still managed to keep nine clean sheets in 22 starts. The latest shutout came in the 9-0 hammering of United Sikkim on Saturday and that fixture typified Karanjit’s qualities as the 27-year-old remained focused and produced three top class saves to preserve the clean sheet even in a game that was finished as a contest after half an hour. Karanjit has been one of the few positives for Salgaocar this season and it would be interesting to see whether the former JCT man remains with the Goan club next season. His reputation has got enhanced after another consistent campaign in which he also earned the first-ever red card of his career, with the decision unsurprisingly being controversial.

1. Sandip Nandy (Churchill Brothers) (10)

Photo Credit: AIFF Media

The 38-year-old leads this chart and with four games still remaining, Sandip could very well extend his lead. Many people thought Sandip was finished at the top level after East Bengal’s refusal to offer him a new contract after the end of last season, but the custodian reunited with former boss Subhash Bhowmick at Churchill Brothers and proved his critics wrong in some style. Incredibly, Sandip is the only goalkeeper in the I-League to have played every minute of his side’s campaign and of course the only custodian to reach double figures in this category. Such form and consistency has also seen the former East Bengal and Mahindra United keeper make a remarkable return to the national team but more importantly, his performances has been instrumental in the title challenge of current league leaders Churchill Brothers. Winning the I-League trophy will be the main target for Sandip but he wouldn’t mind the bonus of the tag of having the maximum clean sheets this season.

Goalkeeper	Club	Appearances (Starts)	Clean Sheets
Sandip Nandy	Churchill Brothers	22 (22)	10
Karanjit Singh	Salgaocar	22 (22)	9
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu	East Bengal	13 (11)	8
Abhijit Mondal	East Bengal	12 (12)	6
TP Rehnesh	ONGC	16 (15)	6