ISL 2019-20: 5 players who could use the season to receive a national team recall
Former India head coach Stephen Constantine handed out 40 debuts in his four-years at the helm of the national side. Except for Jeje Lalpekhlua and Sunil Chhetri, all the other players who played in the AFC Asian Cup 2019 were given their debuts by Constantine, giving India a larger, more efficient player pool for the national team. However, after an early exit at the Asian Cup despite a 4-1 win over Thailand in their opening match, Constantine stepped down from the top job, paving the way for Stimac to take charge of the national team.
Stimac himself has fielded three debutants already since becoming the head coach. A larger playing pool has resulted in several players being left out of the national side due to stiff competition.
Here is a look at the five players who could use the upcoming Indian Super League season to their advantage to get back into the national team.
#5 Narayan Das
Narayan Das was a pivotal member of Constantine's setup for a long time till the AFC Asian Cup 2019. He formed a formidable defensive partnership with Pritam Kotal, Sandesh Jhingan and Anas Edathodika at the back. This was seldom changed by Constantine until Jerry Lalrinzuala and Salam Ranjan came into the fore. Eventually, over the time, he lost his place to a more composed and settled Subhasish Bose.
With Carlos Delgado, Gaurav Bora and Lalchhuanmawia at the back, Das needs to combine well on the left wing in offence and defence to have any hope of propelling Odisha FC into the top four . Only then will he have a chance to replace Subhasish Bose, who is well set for the India duties.