Quick Info→
Age: 46 Years
Profession: Former Footballer, Football Commentator
Wife: Mithu Jopaul
Some Lesser Known Facts About Jo Paul Ancheri
- Jo Paul Ancheri used to play skilled soccer in India, however now he works as a commentator for Star Sports Malayalam. He was a flexible participant and performed in many alternative positions, like midfielder, defensive midfielder, defender, and striker. He captained the Indian nationwide soccer staff. In the 1993-1994 season, when he joined Mohun Bagan, a well-known membership in Kolkata, he performed amazingly nicely and have become standard amongst soccer followers throughout the nation. Just like his fellow Keralite I. M. Vijayan, Jo Paul was chosen to play for the Indian nationwide soccer staff after persistently performing nicely within the home league.
- From a younger age, he was an ardent soccer fan; he participated in matches and coaching camps as a child. In an interview, he remembered how these coaching camps allowed him to pursue an expert soccer profession.
- On 28 December 2008, Jo Paul acquired married to Mithu Jopaul on the Marta Mariam Big Church in Thrissur. By that point, he had already retired as an expert footballer and was working in Kolkata because the chief coach of the Mohun Bagan Sail Football Academy.
- In 1992, he managed to safe his first skilled contract with the State Bank of Travancore Football Club (SBT). Some stories steered that the efforts and self-discipline he displayed throughout numerous coaching camps and trials had been the rationale behind SBT’s eager curiosity in him.
- They fashioned an ideal connection, as Jo Paul persistently showcased spectacular performances that lived as much as the excessive expectations positioned on him. After finishing his first skilled season with the State Bank of Travancore Club, he determined to half methods with them when the 1992-1993 season got here to an finish.
- Jo Paul’s spectacular debut season on the State Bank of Travancore Football Club didn’t go unnoticed within the soccer world; a number of golf equipment got here ahead with presents to signal the participant. After partaking in prolonged discussions, he ended the hypothesis by revealing his choice to affix Mohun Bagan, a staff based mostly in Kolkata. The prospect of taking part in alongside I. M. Vijayan, who hailed from Thrissur, Kerala, like himself, stuffed him with pleasure. The information of his switch to the famend Kolkata staff, Mohun Bagan, created a buzz and grabbed headlines.
- His first season with the Kolkata staff was unforgettable, marked by a objective in his debut match. Despite being a newcomer, he swiftly established himself as a vital participant for the staff. Through enrapturing shows, he turned a beloved participant amongst supporters. Jo Paul’s debut season with Bagan turned out to be historic as they triumphed within the Calcutta Football League (CFL), Sikkim Governor’s Gold Cup, Durand Cup, and the Federation Cup. Later, within the last of the Sikkim Gold Cup, he scored a exceptional hat trick, main his staff to victory after being two objectives behind.
- His first stint at Mohun Bagan lasted just one season, because the footballer departed the next yr. It was throughout the 1993-1994 season that he acquired his first call-up to characterize the Indian nationwide staff and solidified his place as one of many nation’s best gamers.
- His distinctive efficiency all through the season with Mohun Bagan caught the eye of the Indian nationwide soccer staff’s scouts. Reflecting on his journey, he talked about in an interview that his early success with Mohun Bagan performed a major function in incomes him alternatives to characterize the nationwide staff in 1994. Jo performed for the Indian nationwide soccer staff between 1994 and 2004.
- Jo Paul marked his worldwide debut on 14 September 1994 in opposition to Bangladesh, and he rapidly made an influence by scoring his maiden worldwide objective.
- After finishing his preliminary season with Mohun Bagan, he made a transfer to affix JCT Football Club. He turned a member of the Punjab-based membership in 1994 and remained with them till 1997. His time on the membership was extremely profitable, as they achieved exceptional victories, together with the Scissors Cup title in 1995 and the Federation Cup in 1996. Notably, JCT emerged because the champions of the inaugural NFL (National Football League) within the 1996-97 season.
- In 1995, the footballer was a part of the Indian soccer staff, which confronted Sri Lanka within the SAFF Cup last. India completed as runners-up, with Sri Lanka scoring the successful objective within the 108th minute after the conventional time ended goalless.
- Continuing their victorious run, JCT lifted the IFA Shield title in 1996. Following three fruitful seasons with the membership, Jo Paul determined to hunt a recent problem. In 1997, he bid farewell to JCT Mills FC (now often known as Jagatjit Cotton & Textile Football Club) and made his means again to Kerala to affix FC Kochin.
- After parting methods with JCT Football Club, Jo Paul joined the newly established FC Kochin. FC Kochin, which participated within the National Football League, was an expert soccer membership. Joining him on this new enterprise was his longtime teammate and rival, I. M. Vijayan.
- In the 1997-1998 season, FC Kochin achieved nice success by successful the Durand Cup, defeating Mohun Bagan 3-1 within the finals. Jo Paul led the staff as captain within the last in opposition to his former membership, delivering an impressive efficiency that overshadowed Mohun Bagan.
- In 1998, Ancheri was named to the Indian soccer staff for the Asian Games; nevertheless, they had been eradicated within the second spherical of the match.
- He represented the Indian nationwide soccer staff in numerous prestigious tournaments, together with the FIFA World Cup qualifiers, the SAFF Championship, and the South Asian Games. Notably, he was a member of the Indian staff that secured victory within the South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) Cup in 1997 and 1999.
- In their debut season, FC Kochin additionally reached the finals of the Scissors Cup in Kerala, the place they confronted off in opposition to the Bahraini staff West Riffa Club. However, attributable to an influence minimize throughout the match, the winners had been decided by a coin toss, and West Riffa Club was declared the victor. At the tip of the season, Jo Paul determined to go away FC Kochin and introduced his return to Mohun Bagan for his second stint with the Kolkata-based membership.
- He was a part of the Mohun Bagan squad for the 1998-1999 season. At the tip of the season, Jo introduced that he was not extending his contract with Bagan.
- The footballer made a comeback to FC Kochin for the 1999-2000 season and remained with the membership for each the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 seasons.
- Jo Paul departed FC Kochin and made a stunning transfer to grow to be a participant for the East Bengal Club in 2001. It was the primary time that Kolkata’s viewers would witness him donning the colors of their arch-rivals, having beforehand performed for Mohun Bagan.
- In 2001, Jo Paul gained the LG Cup with India (Under-23) in opposition to the host nation Vietnam.
- In an interview, he shared his ideas on Kolkata followers, highlighting their tendency to both help or criticize gamers based mostly on their performances. His first and solely stint with East Bengal was throughout the 2001-2002 season. Eventually, after the season concluded, he determined to affix the JCT Football Club.
- In 2002, Ancheri returned to the Punjab-based membership after 5 years. The footballer was a part of the membership for the following two seasons. Later, he revealed that he would depart the membership on the finish of the 2003-2004 season.
- During the FIFA World Cup qualifiers in 2002, Jo Paul made important contributions to the Indian nationwide staff. He scored two objectives in opposition to Yemen, which performed a vital function in securing a draw because the match led to a 3-3 tie.
- Additionally, he scored the lone objective in India’s victory over Brunei on 11 May 2001, incomes three beneficial factors within the World Cup qualifiers. Furthermore, Jo Paul displayed his scoring prowess once more in India’s resounding 5-0 overcome Brunei on 20 May 2001, the place he discovered the again of the online.
- Later, when Jo Paul acquired injured and was not chosen for the Indian nationwide soccer staff, he started working as a Lower Division Clerk within the Ministry of Health of the Kerala State Government. In an interview, he revealed that he discovered it troublesome to simply accept his state of affairs, contemplating all of the contributions he had made to his nation.
- Paul was named to the Indian staff for the 2003 Afro-Asian Games in 2003; they ended up because the runners-up.
- One yr later, in 2004, he made his last look for the Indian nationwide staff. The footballer’s worldwide profession was abruptly halted attributable to an ankle harm, which compelled him to prematurely retire from worldwide soccer.
- In 2004, Jo Paul returned to Mohun Bagan forward of the 2004-2005 season. At the tip of the season, the participant introduced his retirement as an expert soccer participant.
- Later, Jo Paul ventured into soccer commentary following his choice to retire from skilled soccer. He gained fame for his function as a Malayalam commentator and pundit, notably working with Star Sports Malayalam. In recognition of his experience, he joined the Regional Experts Panel by ViaCom18 for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
- He has an in depth relationship with former footballer I. M. Vijayan, with whom he has shared the sphere at a number of golf equipment comparable to Mohun Bagan, JCT Football Club, FC Kochin, and East Bengal. Additionally, they had been teammates within the Indian nationwide soccer staff from 1994 to 2003. The particular bond between Jo Paul and I. M. Vijayan has resulted in a few of the most memorable moments in Indian soccer, each on worldwide and home ranges. Later, he was forged within the Malayalam drama ‘Aanaparambile World Cup’ directed by Nikhil Premraj together with I. M. Vijayan.
- Jo Paul was named to a particular remark panel for the Novus Soccer Academy, which is led by former Indian captain U Sharaf Ali. Notable former Indian gamers like I. M. Vijayan additionally maintain administrative positions on this bold mission. They goal to determine an expert soccer membership beneath the academy by 2028.
- In 2019, when Stephen Constantine left his place as the pinnacle coach of the Indian nationwide soccer staff, Jo Paul advisable that the All India Football Federation rent an skilled overseas supervisor who might elevate the Indian staff’s efficiency. Following Constantine’s departure, Igor Štimac, a former Croatian footballer who was a part of the Croatian nationwide staff that achieved third place within the 1998 FIFA World Cup, took over as the pinnacle coach of the Indian nationwide soccer staff. Before this function, Štimac additionally served because the supervisor of the Croatian nationwide soccer staff from 2012 to 2013.
- Jo Paul often drinks alcohol.
- Jo has labored in a District Medical Office in Kerala.