S. Prakadeswaran’s (L) journey has been built on temple tournaments, seven-hour trips, hostel life and the stubborn belief that Chennai football still has stories worth telling. | Photo Credit: Chennaiyin FC/ISL

In Brislee Nagar settlement, near Otteri, football did not first come to S. Prakadeswaran through academies, scouts or floodlit stadiums. It came through narrow lanes, the road outside his home, and the local tournaments that became part of the area’s rhythm during the Tamil month of Aadi, when temple organisers across parts of Chennai stage football competitions for neighbourhood teams.

That was where Prakadeswaran, barefoot and still a schoolboy, first began to stand out.

“Everyone in my area played football,” Prakadeswaran told Sportstar. “Even my father played. We used to play on the road.”

Now 19, Prakadeswaran is part of Chennaiyin FC’s senior side in the Indian Super League (ISL). In a season where Chennaiyin has struggled near the bottom of the table, his emergence has offered the club’s supporters a different kind of cheer: a Chennai boy, raised in the city’s football lanes, coming through the club’s pathway and wearing the shirt at the highest level.

Chennaiyin has had Tamil Nadu representation before. Dhanpal Ganesh, from Chennai, was part of the club’s earlier ISL years, while Edwin Sydney Vanspaul, from Neyveli, returned to the side last season. But Prakadeswaran’s story carries a distinct pull. He is not just from the State. He is from the city, from the academy, and from the kind of local football culture that often remains outside the frame.

His father, P. Sakthivel, works as a security guard. His mother, G. Veni, is an in-charge at MCTM Government School in Purasaivakkam. Before entering the sports hostel system, Prakadeswaran studied at a government school in his locality. His first structured football training came through a camp started by his relative Nallathambi, before his father helped him enter the SDAT sports hostel pathway in Class VIII. His brother, S. Kamaleshwaran, had joined the hostel before him.

Under coach Johnson at SDAT, Prakadeswaran began to understand the discipline behind the game. Chennaiyin’s youth coaches later spotted him during a five-a-side tournament in his locality. He moved to the SDAT hostel in Neyveli in 2018, and in 2019 Chennaiyin called him up for its Under-13 camp.

The first obstacle came even before he could join.

“The SDAT sports hostel didn’t allow me first, and then I approached the coach and convinced him personally,” he said. “By then, Chennaiyin FC had completed trials and selections, and I directly joined the team at Chettinad Football Ground while it was playing the Reliance Cup.”

Chennaiyin later conducted separate trials for him. At 13, he became part of the club’s youth set-up, training under Ramakrishnan in the U-13s, Lakshmanan in the U-15s and later Rajan Mani in the U-17s.

The journey, however, was never simple. From the hostel, he often travelled alone for Chennaiyin matches, sometimes starting a day early, with the round trip taking close to seven hours.

Then came COVID-19, when training shifted home. Chennaiyin called him back for its U-18 side in 2023, and Rajan Mani later gave him his first leadership opportunity in the youth set-up. Around the same period, Prakadeswaran also attended an India U-17 camp in Goa in 2024, just before his Class XII exams.

“It was my first trip in an aeroplane,” he said. “I travelled alone. It was difficult at first because nobody spoke my language, but football united me with others.”

His ISL debut came as a substitute in Chennaiyin’s 1-2 defeat to Inter Kashi at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on April 7. His mother was in the stands that night with his brother, not in a VIP box, and Prakadeswaran did not know she had come.

“My brother unexpectedly brought her,” he said. “My parents were very happy after my debut. The people in my area knew my struggle, the early mornings, the journeys alone, and they felt all the difficulty had finally paid off.”

His first senior goal arrived later that month against Jamshedpur FC. Chennaiyin lost 4-1, but Prakadeswaran’s strike was the moment the club carried back from the night. Before the match in Jamshedpur, head coach Clifford Miranda had spoken to him during shooting practice about when to shoot and when to place the ball.

“During the match, I applied his words,” Prakadeswaran said. “I collected the ball, cut inside, and with the inside of my left foot took a shot and connected it.”

He has also found guidance in teammate and attacking midfielder, Alberto Noguera, who has helped him with shoulder checks, quicker decisions and releasing the ball earlier. More than the advice, Prakadeswaran says he watches the Spaniard’s routine: the gym work, the discipline and the way he approaches every training session.

Across the ISL, Kolkata’s two giants naturally carry a strong local football identity, while clubs such as FC Goa and Kerala Blasters have often maintained a visible State connection. Chennaiyin’s link with its own city, however, has not always felt as direct on the pitch.

Prakadeswaran is still at the beginning. There have only been substitute appearances, one goal, and a long way to go. But for a club searching for signs in a difficult season, the boy from Otteri has given Chennaiyin something its supporters can recognise.

“I’m learning from everyone here,” he said. “My aim is to reach Team India next.”

Published on May 16, 2026