Ninthoinganba Meetei

Ninthoinganba Meetei

Ninthoi with India U17 in 2017
Personal information
Full name	Khumanthem Ninthoinganba Meetei
Date of birth	(2001-07-13) 13 July 2001 (age 22)
Place of birth	Imphal, Manipur, India
Height	1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Punjab
Youth career
2015–2017	AIFF Elite Academy
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2017–2019	Indian Arrows	25	(2)
2019–2021	NorthEast United	24	(0)
2021–2024	Chennaiyin	45	(3)
2024–	Punjab	0	(0)
International career‡
2015–2018	India U17	26	(0)
2017–2019	India U20	16	(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:55, 20 April 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 30 September 2019 (UTC)

Khumanthem Ninthoinganba Meetei (born 13 July 2001), commonly known as Ninthoi, is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Indian Super League club Punjab.

Career

Born in Manipur, Meetei was part of the AIFF Elite Academy batch that was preparing for the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup to be hosted in India. ^[1] After the tournament, Meetei was selected to play for the Indian Arrows, an All India Football Federation-owned team that would consist of India under-20 players to give them playing time. ^[2] He made his professional debut for the side 5 December 2017 against Minerva Punjab. He came on as an 85th-minute substitute as Indian Arrows lost 2–0. ^[3]

NorthEast United

Ninthoinganba Meetei, fondly known as Ninthoi was signed by NorthEast United following a terrific 2018-19 campaign for the Indian Arrows on a 3 years deal. Ninthoi had a formidable Indian Super League debut with NorthEast United, making 11 appearances and averaging 18 passes per game. He was retained ahead of the 2020-21 season.

Chennaiyin

On 7 September 2021, Chennaiyin announced that they had completed the signing of Ninthoi on a three-year deal. ^[4]

International

Meetei represented the India under-17 side which participated in the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup which was hosted in India. ^[1]

He won the Most Valuable Player Award in 2019 SAFF U-18 Championship.

Career statistics

Club

As of 20 April 2024 ^[5]

Club	Season	League			Cup		AFC		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Indian Arrows	2017–18	I-League	10	0	0	0	—		10	0
	2018–19		15	2	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	—		17	2
	Total		25	2	2	0	0	0	27	2
NorthEast United	2019–20	Indian Super League	11	0	0	0	—		11	0
	2020–21		13	0	0	0	—		13	0
	Total		24	0	0	0	0	0	24	0
Chennaiyin	2021–22	Indian Super League	14	1	0	0	—		14	1
	2022–23		12	0	6 [lower-alpha 2] [lower-alpha 1]	0	—		18	0
	2023–24		19	2	4 [lower-alpha 2] [lower-alpha 1]	0	—		23	2
	Total		45	3	10	0	0	0	55	3
Punjab	2024–25	Indian Super League	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
Career total			94	5	12	0	0	0	106	5

1. Appearance(s) in Super Cup
2. Appearance(s) in Durand Cup

Honours

India U-19

• SAFF U-18 Championship: 2019

References

1. Selvaraj, Jonathan (3 October 2017). "How 14,000 became 21: The story of India's history boys". ESPN.in. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
2. "Matos Names 25-member Indian Arrows Squad for Hero I-league 2017-18". The All India Football Federation. 29 November 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
3. "Indian Arrows 0-2 Minerva Punjab". Soccerway.
4. "Official – Chennaiyin FC signs promising Indian midfielder Ninthoi Meetei". iftwc.com. Retrieved 7 September 2021.
5. Ninthoinganba Meetei at Soccerway