Jhingan deserves to play in better football leagues, says coach

Ahead of the clash between India and St Kitts & Nevis in the tri-nation series, host country coach Stephen Constantine on Monday heaped praise on new captain Sandesh Jhingan and said the defender deserves to play in bigger leagues.

The newly-appointed captain made his debut for the national side against Nepal under the mentorship of Constantine, serving his second stint with India.

"The captain has to reflect the character of the team. He has to set the tone of the team. Sandesh to me is a player who should be playing in a bigger league... defender par excellence," Constantine said.

Jhingan has played a stellar role in the Indian back-four along with Anas Etathodika, Pritam Kotal, Narayan Das and Gurpreet Sandhu (in goal) in helping India create a new record for Indian football in winning nine International matches.

The coach added that Jhingan was a one of the "leaders for the future".

"In coming days, at least we can identify Sandesh as a leader once Sunil hangs his boots," the 54-year-old said.

Meanwhile, Chhetri, along with Gurpreet Singh Sandhu and Udanta Singh will be joining the National Camp after Bengaluru FC's AFC Cup stint.

India have won two of their two matches in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers against Myanmar (away) and Kyrgyz Republic (at home) and will face Macau on September 5 (in Macau).

--IANS

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