Sportskeeda Indian Football Awards: Top 10 Indian defenders of 2016
In a time when sweeping changes are being made to the structure of Indian football, it is sometimes forgotten that there is football action on the pitch. The national team played six games and two separate leagues have started and finished from the beginning of 2016.
Here, we take a look at the men at the back – the rearguard. The usual suspects like Arnab Mondal and Sandesh Jhingan have once again asserted themselves as the best defenders in the country. But what has been pleasantly surprising has been the emergence of youngsters like Chinglensana Singh and Jerry Lalrinzuala.
The voting by fans
We sent out a poll for fans to vote on which Indian defender had the best year, and Sportskeeda experts also weighed in on the matter.
The one with the highest vote received 10 points, and the one with the lowest got 1 point. The scores from Sportskeeda’s list and the Reader’s choice are then added together, with an average score being taken. In the situation of two players tied, Sportskeeda’s ranking takes preference.
Here are the final rankings:
#10 Chinglensana Singh
The young Manipuri made a name for himself in the ISL. His performances ensured that Gianluca Zambrotta pushed Souvik Chakraborty from his natural position at right-back to the other full-back position.
In 2014, Sana was sent by the Tata Football Academy for an exposure tour to England, where he played a couple of games for the Sheffield United U18s.
His break in Indian football came in the I-League this year with Shillong Lajong. Sana played 14 games for the Meghalaya-based team in the I-League and the Dynamos saw his obvious talent there.
It is a huge plus that Sana is versatile as well; he is equally adept playing at both full-back positions as well as at centre-back. There is a lot more that Sana has to offer for both club and country and 2017 will be a huge year for him.
He showed his potential and ability in 2016. Next year, he will have to prove that this year was not a flash in the pan and consistency will be the next target for the man from Manipur.