The last 12 months or so has seen the coming forth of one of India’s most talented youngsters. In this short period, Chinglensana Singh has propelled himself from a literally unknown to one of the most promising youngsters in the Indian footballing circuit. A graduate of the Tata Football Academy, the young defender was snapped up by Shillong Lajong in 2014.
And then in January last year, he was announced as a part of their I-League campaign. The rest, as they say, is history. The youngster impressed all and sundry with his performances on the pitch for the North Eastern side. Phone lines remained busy this summer. A contract with the Delhi Dynamos was followed by a call-up to the national side under Stephen Constantine.
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While he did play in the win in the friendly against Bhutan, he is still to officially make his debut for the Blue Tigers as the game was played on a date that didn’t confer with FIFA’s official dates for international friendlies. However, being with the best in the country and playing for the nation has certainly been a learning experience for the man from Mizoram.
“I first made my debut against Bhutan earlier this year, and it was a dream come true to don the Indian cap. Even though it was only a friendly, it was my debut for the India team. I did as the coach asked me to and I did well.
“The atmosphere in the dressing room, players in the dressing room like Sunil Chettri, Eugenson Lyngdoh are people I look up to as they are great players, I got to learn a lot from them on and off the field.”
However, just a spot on the bench doesn’t seem to be enough for Dynamos’ defender as he aims to make it to the starting eleven soon. “It's great to be a part of the team as the Indian football team is on the move, and together we aim to achieve better results than what we achieved against Puerto Rico. I am also looking forward to making my starting XI debut for the Indian team very soon as I am very motivated and I am working very hard for it.”
A change for the better
The dream of playing football professionally in India is still a difficult one to harbour. Even though the ISL has opened the doors to fortunes for many at the top, with 5 Indian players playing for each of the sides, the financial rewards for many seem to be still stuck to the top tier. However, with the ISL planning on expanding in the near future, even more players from across the country are likely to get more footballing exposure and much-needed financial backing.
Chinglensana has always had the talent and now his hard work is certainly paying off. The defender was part of the Tata Football Academy team that won the U19 I-League tournament in 2014. And when Chinglensana came to light last season in the I-League, Delhi were quick to snap up his services.
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His transition into the team has been smoothened by the presence of Shakti Chauhan, a current assistant coach of the Lions under whom he had played at the Tata Football Academy. For Chinglensana, he has reaped the rewards for his hard work and has seen his life take a turn for the better in recent times.
“My life has changed for the better and I am really happy about it, I am also very thankful to people who have been a part of it. When I was in the academy people have supported me immensely, and when I would also like to thank Shillong Lajong for giving me the stage to showcase my performance.
“Now here with the Delhi Dynamos, I have seen are also focusing on the young players and of course training under Coach Zambrotta is a great thing in itself, he always motivates us to do better.
“In today's day and age we have the technology to watch videos of extraordinary players and analyse their games to implement the same in our own games, in my past time I spend a lot of time analyzing games of iconic center backs and right backs, and put what I observe when I get on the field.
“I am extremely thankful to Delhi Dynamos for signing me up and I am looking forward to the season ahead.”
North-East coming to the fore
North Eastern states have seen a revolution in the recent past with the Indian contingent filled with talented youngsters from the region. In fact, the number of players from regions was seven when India took on Puerto Rico las month in an international friendly and Chinglesana doesn’t seem surprised by the talents coming out from that part of the country as he feels that with the ISL, playing football has become a dream that is feasible for the youngsters in the region.
“The North East of India has always been one of the main powerhouses of Indian Footballers, in the past years there have been many players who have hailed from the North-East, including many legendary Indian Footballers who I have watched while growing up.
“There was a time when there weren't as many players in the Indian Team from the North-Eastern region, which was obviously not a good thing for many aspirants from the region, but now with the new generation of footballers have enough opportunity to play in big clubs in the ISL and I-League to be spotted and scouted for the National Camp.
“It is a very prestigious time because so many young North Eastern players are getting a chance to play in the National team, as well as big ISL clubs. I got my opportunity to play for the Delhi Dynamos F.C. due to being able to play for an I-league club and perform well. The ISL has done a great job too, and the quality of players has increased immensely, also the incoming of younger and quality foreign players helps the young players gain more global exposure and experience.
“With the number of North-Eastern I-league clubs coming up, it has helped the quality players get a chance in the Indian team as well as the ISL.”
Learning the playbook on short notice
Owing to his commitments to the national team, Chinglensana missed the UK leg of the pre-season tour and joined in at Sweden with the team, where he had to hit the ground running.
“The Pre-season with Delhi Dynamos F.C. has been great, the players have all gelled really well and there are no apprehensions from any individual player in the team, hence there is absolutely no attitude problem in the team. The dressing room is full of positive energy always, and Florent Malouda is such a legendary player; Marcos Tebar as well, it's great to have them in the dressing room with me.”
A Real Madrid fan, the Mizoramese is a big fan of Sergio Ramos and models his game on the Spaniard’s. A centre-back by trade, like Ramos, when the team called for him to play as a right-back in the preseason against Skene IF, he duly obliged.
“I would like to play in any position that the coach things he wants me to be in and excel in every role I am given. I am also looking forward to learning a lot from the Coach as he himself has been a right back, and I want to excel as a versatile player.
“Ruben has played for Real Madrid team and has been a part of the Champions League-winning team and he is a center back just like me so I get to learn a lot from him. I have had a chat with Ruben as he has played in Real Madrid, and knows my idol Sergio Ramos, I always ask Ruben in the practice session and in the match to point out my mistakes and shortcomings as I am young and in my developmental process of my career and he has been extremely helpful.”
Going into his debut season his aspirations are high, After managing to reach the last four the last time around, Delhi will be looking to take a step or even two further. And Chinglensana shares the same vision. However, national duties also are firmly within his sights.
“I would like to be a part of the starting 11 of the India team in the near future and to continue my India career for a very long time. I would like to cement my position in the India team,” signs off the talented youngster.
The North East has been brimming with talent and now with local footballing tournaments alongwith the stage of ISL on the offing, local lads from the region have been finally been given the wings to carry their dreams further. Chinglensana one of the few to have benefitted from the initiatives at both the local as well as national level. And we hope that like him, in the coming years, the ISL and the North East continue giving us such pleasant surprises.
