KASARGOD: After Tahsin Mohammed Jamshid with Kannur roots made it to Qatar’s World Cup squad, another footballer with links to the district is making waves, this time in Spain — Jithin Janardhanan.
The 27-year-old is turning heads, not as a player but on the touchlines: training players at popular Spanish club Rayo Vallecano. He was appointed the assistant coach of Rayo Vallecano B -- the La Liga club’s reserve side playing in Tercera Federacion, the fifth tier of the Spanish league system -- last month.
Jithin was born in Kannur to Janaradhanan and Deepika, who migrated to the UAE with their three children while he was a child. After moving to the UAE, Jithin enrolled with the Sharjah Indian School. Attracted to football from childhood, he played for his school team as well as local clubs as a right back. But his dream of becoming a professional footballer like Tahsin Mohammed was shattered by repetitive injuries.
“I’m a die-hard football fan from my childhood, especially a big fan of (legendary Italian defender) Paolo Maldini. I then began idolising Leo (Messi) and wanted to become a professional footballer like everyone, but unfortunately, I couldn’t make it,” Jithin tells TNIE over the phone from Spain.
But he was not ready to give up on football that easily. Recognising his passion, his parents encouraged him to continue pursuing football but at a different level. He moved to Spain to pursue a master’s degree in Football Coaching and Management from Escuela Universitaria Real Madrid, popularly known as the Real Madrid Graduate School for its association with the celebrated club.
He later joined AD Alcorcon, gradually rising in ranks from assistant manager of the C team to assistant coach of the B team. “I decided to explore something to sustain in football and I came to a conclusion to choose my career as a coach or a person working in the technical side of professional football,” Jithin says. He went on to coach young players, including Tahsin Mohammed at one point.
“One of my proud moments as a coach was to see two players associated with me in the season 2024-25 making it to the FIFA World Cup squad for Qatar -- Tahsin Mohammad and Al Hashmi Al Hussein. I’m all the more proud that Tahsin hails from the same place (Kannur),” he says. Jithin urges youngsters from Keralam with genuine talent to pursue football seriously. “I would recommend people to not quit or give up. With hard work, consistency and dedication, everyone can achieve their dreams,” he adds.
His father Janardhanan works at the Dubai International Airport while mother Deepika is a homemaker.