Vishal Kaith (born 22 July 1996) is an Indian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Indian Super League club Mohun Bagan.
Early life and career
Having come up through the state level ranks for Himachal Pradesh, he was recruited by the AIFF to play for the under-16 and under-19 national sides before joining the AIFF Elite Academy in 2011 to play under-19 national league, before being picked up by Shillong Lajong.
Club career
Shillong Lajong
Vishal Kaith joined Shillong Lajong after spending a year at the AIFF Elite Academy on 21 July 2014 and made his official debut in the second game of his teams' 2014-15 Indian Federation Cup against Salgaocar and was adjudged as the Man of the Match despite a 2-1 loss. Kaith would go on to obtain the Man of the Match award in his second first team appearance against Mohun Bagan despite a 1-0 loss. Kaith made his senior I-League debut on 28 March 2015 against Sporting Goa in a 1-1 draw but was sent off in the 50th minute for a handball outside the box.
Kaith showed good progress in pre-season for the new season and he became a pivotal part of the club. He started in the first match of 2015-16 I-League season against Mumbai FC which ended in a 0-0 stalemate. This was Vishal's first ever cleansheet on professional level Under the guidance of Thangboi Singto, Kaith became the first choice goalkeeper for Shillong Lajong in entire season. He started in fifteen games and kept five important clean sheets with Shillong finish sixth in league. He also played in Lajong's all four games in 2015–16 Indian Federation Cup where Lajong defeated East Bengal in first leg of quarterfinals 2-1 and second leg ended in a 2-2 draw after extra time. Lajong lost to Mohun Bagan in first leg of semi-finals 5-0 and second leg ended in a 0-0 draw.
Pune City (loan) On 25 May 2016, Indian Super League club Pune City signed Kaith on loan from Shillong Lajong for the third edition of Indian Super League where he was third choice keeper and made no appearances during the season.
Return from Loan and Departure
He returned to Lajong from loan on 1 January 2017 ahead of 2016-17 I-League season. He made his competitive return in Lajong colours in a 3-0 loss to defending champions Bengaluru FC. He played in all league games and kept three cleansheets. Lajong ended their campaign with a 1-1 draw to eventual champions Aizawl FC. He also played in all group games of Federation Cup where first two games ended in a 3-2 loss to Bengaluru FC and Mohun Bagan respectively. He received a straight red card in the seventy fifth minute of last group game against DSK Shivajians which ended in a 3-2 win but not enough to help Lajong qualify for semifinals.
Pune City
Chennaiyin
On August 31, 2019, Vishal Kaith signed for Chennaiyin on a long-term permanent deal with the club after spending the previous three seasons at Pune City. On 4 January 2021, He played his 50th ISL match against Hyderabad FC which ended in a 4-1 loss.
ATK Mohun Bagan FC
In June 2022, Vishal Kaith signed for ATK Mohun Bagan on a three-year deal. He made his debut in 2022 Durand Cup in a 1-1 draw against Mumbai City FC.
International career
Youth
Kaith was handed his India U19 debut on 4 October 2013 against Qatar U19 in 2014 AFC U-19 Championship Qualifiers. Kaith kept first clean sheet for India U19 against Nepal U19, in which India U19 defeated Nepal U19 by 1–0. In July 2017, Kaith represented India U23 in AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers which held in Qatar.
Senior
Kaith received his maiden call-up for Indian team camp for AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers match against Kyrgyzstan on 13 June 2017. After being named in squad multiple times as a backup keeper, he was named as the first choice keeper for 2018 SAFF Championship as team manager Stephen Constantine decided fo field a young squad. He played in all games where he got his first cleansheets in group games against Sri Lanka and Maldives where both ended in a 2-0 win. He conceded his first goal in semifinal 3-1 win over arch-rivals Pakistan. India lost in the final to Maldives 2-1. He was named in squad for 2019 AFC Asian Cup and was on bench in all games. He was a part of the team which won 2021 SAFF Championship.