CHENNAI: When number ‘52’ was shown on the substitution board, the largely quiet crowd attending Chennaiyin FC’s home match against Mohammedan SC on Tuesday got their reasons to go loud. It was their jersey number of their local boy Prakadeswaran S. As he jogged to take his position on the right wing, the cheers from the fans got louder.
And the teenager did not waste anytime. Coming on for Maheson Singh Tongbram, his first few touches brought energy into the team as he got past defenders with his nimble footwork.
His first shot, although off-target brought that spark that was missing within his teammates.
Playing on the right wing position, the Tamil Nadu player demanded the ball, showed confidence in his dribbles and made the right decisions with passes. In the 34 minutes he played in the match, his passes were on point, completing 19 out of 21 passes. He was also the pivot point of Chennai’s attack in the second half in their search for the match-winning goal. Unfortunately, they could not find the breakthrough.
In fact, when he made his debut as a substitute in Chennai’s 1-2 defeat to Inter Kashi, the lad got the loudest of receptions from the crowd, which in result spurred the team in getting a goal in an otherwise poor match. Daniel Chima Chukwu scored in stoppage of that match.
Prakadeswaran has been part of the youth team set-up at Chennaiyin FC since 2022. He also earned a call up to the Indian men’s U17 team.
Clifford Miranda praised the young winger. “He's been training very well, if you see him play against Inter Kashi, and come at a moment when we were down, it's because he's been training very, very well, and he's the reason we put him there. It is also a big moment for the club because it's one of the players who has come from the ranks, it's a very, very big moment for the club, and he's a local boy,” he had said after Chennai’s defeat to Inter Kashi.
Miranda had said that Prakadeswaran may get to play more this season if he trains well.
“If he's here, and if he's played the other day, it's because he's been training very well, and he's very, very good. It doesn't matter how many games he has played, it doesn't matter how expensive he is, it doesn't matter. If he trains well, he plays well,” he added.