ISL 2017/18: 6 young Indian players who have shined in the ISL so far

The Hero Indian Super League is underway and league leaders, Bengaluru FC, have already booked their place in the semi-final, while other teams are looking to leapfrog each other with only a few games left in the season.

The 2017-18 ISL has been a roller-coaster ride for many teams as well as players, and two new teams have been introduced in the competition as well. So, let us look at some youngsters who have had some eye-catching performances in the competition so far.

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#6 Jerry Lalrinzuala (Chennayin FC)

The 19-year-old defender has played 16 matches and has 2 assists beside his name, as Chennaiyin FC is in the third place on the table with 28 points, six points behind table-toppers Bengaluru FC.

An AIFF academy product, Jerry Lalrinzuala has represented India from U-14 to U-19 age groups. He made 40 tackles and 19 interceptions while playing with and against experienced players in the competition. He debuted in ISL 2016, where he scored 1 goal and made 2 assists. As a result, the fans are expecting to see more from him in the upcoming days.

#5 Sarthak Golui (Pune City FC)

The youngster has been good defensively and offensively

The 20-year-old defender represented India in U-23 level and he has debuted in this year's ISL. FC Pune City is in the second place on the table with 29 points while Chennaiyin FC is breathing heavily on their shoulders with 28 points from 16 matches.

Young Sarthak Golui, has 1 goal and 3 assists with 25% goal conversion rate. On the other hand, he played 12 matches and made 29 tackles as well as 8 interceptions. Everyone should keep an eye on him for the rest of the season.

#4 Anirudh Thapa

Anirudh Thapa has a good goal conversion rate

The 20-year-old midfielder from Dehradun is an AIFF academy product who represented India between the age groups of U-14 and U-19. He started playing ISL in 2016 with Chennaiyin FC where he played only one match and made 1 assist in it.

The talented young midfielder started to develop and played 12 matches till now in this edition; he bagged 1 goal and 1 assist till now with 33% goal conversion rate, on the other hand, he made 13 tackles and 9 interceptions for Chennaiyin FC.

#3 Vinit Rai

Vinit Rai has shined for Delhi Dynamos

The 20-year-old midfielder from Assam made his appearance for the National side in U-19 and U-23 age groups. He started his journey of ISL with Kerala Blasters last year and appeared only for two matches but the young central midfielder played 12 matches for Delhi Dynamos in this edition.

He made 24 tackles and 13 interceptions so far; Delhi Dynamos made a disastrous start in this season and they are in the ninth place of the table with 12 points from 15 games but Vinit Rai made some eye-catching performance and made his place in the first eleven.

#2 Jerry Mawihmingthanga (Jamshedpur FC)

He has the talent to become a great forward in the near future

A product of the DSK Shivajians Academy in Pune, 20-year-old Jerry is oozing with potential as a lethal forward. Jamshedpur FC made their appearance for the first time in this ISL and managed to keep themselves in the fourth place of the table with 26 points from 16 games till now in the competition.

Jerry scored 1 goal and made 3 assists with 7% goal conversion rate.However, He made 27 tackles as well as 16 interceptions till now in the competition. He won the hearts of the supporters with his mesmerizing performance in 14 matches.

#1 Vishal Kaith (Pune City FC)

Vishal Kaith could win the golden glove this year

The 21-year-old gifted goalkeeper from Himachal Pradesh joined the AIFF Elite Academy in 2013 and started his career with Shillong Lajong FC ahead of the 2014/15 Hero I-League. In this edition of ISL, Pune city won 9 games and lost 5 games till now in the competition.

He started playing for FC Pune city and appeared in 13 matches till now. Vishal Kaith made 31 saves and kept 6 clean sheets out of 13 games, as a result, he is leading the race for Golden Glove Award.