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2018 has been another mixed year for Indian football. India started the year being 105 in the FIFA rankings and when the sun sets on 2018, Indian national football team has moved 8 spots forward to be the 97th ranked team in the latest FIFA rankings.
India started the year with the AFC Asian Cup qualification match against Kyrgyzstan which India lost 2-1. Then came the SAFF championship which India lost to the Maldives in the finals of the tournament. As part of the AFC Asian Cup preparations, India played 2 International friendlies against China and Jordan. While India held the red dragons to a draw, they suffered a defeat at the hands of Jordan.
At the fag end of 2018, let us look at the Best and Worst of 2018 - Players in this space.
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# Good - Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
Gurpreet Singh Sandhu had a decent year in 2018 with him holding the fort for the Indian football team on multiple occasions. Particularly his performances in the away draw against a higher ranked China stands out. The same goes for his performances with Bengaluru FC. Except for a few moments where he had lost his cool on the pitch, the standards put forth by him is right there for the upcoming youngsters to see.
His performances must continue in 2019 for India to have a decent AFC Asia cup tournament. Every Indian fan will be hoping Sandhu their wishes for his continued good run of form in 2019.
# Bad - Eugeneson Lyngdoh
2017-18 Indian Super League season draft saw him emerge as one of the highest paid players and everyone knew why. He was too good and deserved it. But ever since then, life has been downhill for Eugeneson Lyngdoh.
The injury he picked up in the last ISL season has had a long-standing impact on his footballing career. Come 2018 ISL season, Eugeneson Lyngdoh still has not become a regular at ATK and is still waiting in the wings to get opportunities to return back to his previous self.
The world knows what Lyngdoh can do in his prime form and fans would be hoping for his faster return so that the talented midfielder can show the world one of the best comeback stories ever.
#Good - Jackichand Singh
Jackichand Singh had a pretty decent year in 2018. His ISL move from Kerala Blasters to FC Goa has paid dividends and he has found the football style of Sergio Lobera much suited to his dedication. He had put out some handy performances for FC Goa in the ISL season and Stephen Constantine had noticed it. He is now part of the Indian squad that Stephen Constantine has trusted to do the job in the Asian Cup.
# Bad - Anas Edathodika
Anas Edathodika had grabbed the Centre midfield position in the Indian national team after a string of superb performances for various ISL franchises. But the year 2018 will have to be termed as an ordinary one for the keralite. He had an injury concern which kept him out of the matches for quite some time and even in the ISL, he was benched and could start only in few matches for Kerala Blasters.
His performances will be extremely critical for India in the AFC Asian Cup and even the coach Constantine will be hopeful of his form improving in 2019.
# Good - Dheeraj Singh
Dheeraj Singh did a great move after the U-17 world cup. He went under the wings of David James in Kerala Blasters. The former custodian mentored the Indian youngster and gave him the confidence to be the number one goalkeeper for Kerala in the ISL. The quality game time that Dheeraj Singh got in the ISL has made him a better custodian. Though David James could not revive the fortunes of Kerala Blasters in 2018, every Indian will be thankful to James for the youngster-friendly approach he has brought into the ISL.
# Bad - Balwant Singh
Balwant Singh was regarded as the right replacement for Sunil Chhetri and Jeje at the top for the Indian football team. 2018 has shown that the team needs to look beyond him. Balwant has not done anything noteworthy off late to warrant an Indian national team call-up. But Stephen Constantine trusts the man and he has flown to UAE for the Asian Cup 2019. Let's all hope that he repays the coach when the time comes calling.
# Good - Michael Soosairaj
Michael Soosairaj debuted in the ISL season on the back of some strong performances in the I-league for Chennai City FC. His quick runs through the wings and his impeccable footwork has bamboozled many. Though he is yet to earn a call-up to the national team, one can assume that those days are not far.
# Bad - CK Vineeth
CK Vineeth was expected to deliver for Kerala Blasters in the ISL season 2018-19. But has failed to do so. His performances in 2018 were just not up to the mark that he was benched by ex-Kerala Coach David James in multiple matches.
The fans too were not happy with his performances such that they even went to the extent of abusing him on social media for which he came out in the open asking the fans not to do it.
It is worth remembering that he was a part of the Indian national team in 2017 while in 2018 he has not been able to gain the attention of Stephen Constantine.
# Good - Sunil Chhetri
Indian football has a single name - Sunil Chhetri. 2018 was again one of the years when that superlative has been extended. Sunil is the leading Indian goal scorer in the ISL 2018 season and carried Bengaluru FC forward even in the absence of Miku.
There is no doubt Sunil Chhetri is the pivotal stay for Indian national team. But the doubt and fear that every fan has is whether India would be able to replace Sunil with someone when he stops playing in the future.
# Bad - Jeje Lalpekhlua
Jeje Lalpekhlua was indeed the player who scored the only goal for India in the loss against Kyrgyzstan early in 2018. But after that, his performances have not been up to the mark. The ISL defending champions Chennaiyin FC who came to the ISL 2018 with almost an unchanged squad had struggled to find the feet and are placed at the bottom of the table. Though Jeje is yet to find his sniper skills back in the ISL, Stephen Constantine has got him on the flight to the UAE.
Hope Jeje comes good in the AFC Asian Cup as without his performances it would be hard to fathom a decent show from the Blue Tigers.
