Gurpreet Singh Sandhu to lead India in Cambodia friendly

Phnom Penh: India’s star goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu is all set to don the captain’s armband in the Blue Tigers’ friendly game against Cambodia, on Wednesday.

This will be the second consecutive match in which the Norway-based custodian will lead the national side onto the pitch.

India head coach Stephen Constantine had first handed the captain’s armband to Gurpreet in an international friendly against Puerto Rico last year.

The 25-year-old has retained the armband in the Cambodia friendly, as the All India Football Federation made the announcement official on Tuesday.

                                  

                                             

However, this may not be an indication of Constantine handing the captain’s armband over from star striker Sunil Chhetri to Gurpreet.

Centreback Arnab Mondal, while addressing the media during the national team’s training camp in Mumbai last week, said that the Englishman is using a rotational system for his captains, with four players – Chhetri, Mondal, Gurpreet, and Robin Singh – taking turns to wear the captain’s armband.

“It’s rotational system. There is no one captain,” Arnab had said. “So the team is not dependent on any one player. The whole team works together. Whoever gets the captains armband, has to lead on the ground, but we as a team take responsibility and fight together.”