Five best foreign players to look out for in ISL this season

Indian Super League Prediction

April 19 2024, 07:30 PM

Odisha

Kerala Blasters

Kolkata, August 30: With the schedule for the sixth season of Indian Super League (ISL) ready, all the franchises are trying their level best to bolster their squad as much as they can.

ATK and Delhi Dynamos have been the most active two sides in the transfer market for quite some time now but other clubs have also picked up pace to sign the best talents available in Indian football and of course from outside the country.

ISL has helped some amazing home-grown talents to make a name for themselves over the years but the glamour and charisma of the League largely depends on the foreign players.

We have seen some globally known stars like Robbie Keane, Roberto Carlos, Luis Garcia, Alessandro del Piero plying their trades in the ISL over the years and this year also, there will be some great foreign players on the show.

Here, we look at five foreign players to watch out for in ISL 2019-20.

Roy Krishna (ATK)

One of the best signings for 2019-20 ISL season came from from ATK when they roped in star Fiji striker Roy, who is the captain of his national team as well as the winner of A-league 2018-19 Golden boot for Wellington Phoenix with 18 goals to his name.

Signing one of the most in-form players from A-League was a huge move by ATK and this could also go down as one of the milestones in ISL history. He represented Fiji in the 2016 Rio Olympics in Brazil and even scored in a Group C match against Mexico. The Fijian is deadly in front of the goal and could prove to be the man who could help ATK win their third ISL title.

Diawandou Diagne (Delhi Dynamos)

A product of Barcelona's famed La Masia academy, the 25-year-old was on the books of Blaugranas in the 2014-15 season when he made over 25 appearances for Barcelona's B team.

A defensive midfielder by trade, Diagne also has two senior caps for Senegal to his name and has the quality to be among the best players in ISL.

Carl McHugh (ATK)

Two-time champions ATK signed former Motherwell FC star McHugh as their first new foreign recruit for the upcoming season.

The 26-year-old has agreed for a two-year deal which will keep him at the club till 2021. The Irishman comes with plenty of experience in England and Scotland and will surely act as a huge boost to the ATK side who are looking strong contenders for the title.

McHugh, who graduated from the academy of Reading, has played for clubs like Motherwell, Plymouth Argyle and Bradford City and is an immensely versatile player who can play either in defence and midfield.

Manuel Onwu (Bengaluru FC )

ISL holders BFC boast a solid team and look to have become even stronger now with the signing of Onwu. The Bengaluru-based franchise have a good history with Spanish players and have a good connection is Spain and Onwu is their latest Spanish import.

The 31-year-old played for UCAM Murcia CF, who play in the second tier of Spanish football league system, became the 13th Spanish player to join The Blues. Onwu has the experience of three seasons in the Spanish top flight and another one in the Segunda Division for Osasuna, Onwu had a brief spell in Georgia with FC Dinamo Tbilisi where he was part of the side that won the 2015 Georgian Cup.

Martin Perez Guedes (Delhi Dynamos )

Argentinian winger Perez can play either as a number ten or on either flank. The playmaker could be a great success in India just like his compatriot Nicolas Velez of NorthEast United FC who is still remembered as one of the best foreign players to play in the ISL.

Perez graduated from the youth academy of famed River Plate in Argentina and his most recent outing was for Defensores de Belgrano, where he spent a season on loan playing in the second division of Argentinian football.