ISL 2019-20: Hyderabad FC Team Preview: Strength, weakness, squad, key players, prediction

Indian Super League Prediction

April 20 2024, 07:30 PM

Goa

Chennaiyin FC

Hyderabad FC will open their campaign against ATK. Credit: ISL

Bengaluru, Oct. 17: Perhaps a playoff spot or even better, a title - that’s what Hyderabad FC would dream for in their maiden Indian Super League (ISL) campaign.

The city of Hyderabad, with a storied past in football, finally has a team of their own in the league. Hyderabad FC is replacing FC Pune City after financial troubles saw the Pune club close shop after last year’s edition.

Here, mykhel.com looks at the relative strengths and weaknesses of Hyderabad FC, who would be hoping to make a strong start to their ISL chapter.

Strengths:

A major part of the team is made up of players of the now-defunct FC Pune City, including top players like Marco Stankovic, Robin Singh, Nikhil Poojary and Marcelo Pereira. The team has also roped in several new players, including the likes of Giles Barnes, Nestor Jesus, Laldanmawia Ralta among several others.

Ralte will be a key player for the club will hope the midfielder settles in quickly with the club. At the helm will be Phil Brown, who revived Pune towards the end of last season.

Brown showed his capabilities in his short stint and his presence in the Hyderabad team will help the side.

Moreover, the combination of Marcelo Pereira and Bobo has created a buzz and if the duo gel well, they could turn out to be a lethal combination. While the duo will add some Samba to the team, Nestor will bring in the Spanish flair to the team. Apart from them, Hyderabad have several more goalscorers and that could be one of their key in their maiden season.

Weaknesses:

The backline lacks Indian presence and Phil Brown will have a tough decision when selecting his team as only five foreigners are allowed to be on the field and most of the lethal attackers in the squad are foreign attackers.

Sahil Panwar and Gurtej Singh could be an option for Brown but they will need to put on a consistent show if they are to be relied upon.

SQUAD:

Goalkeepers: Kamaljit Singh, Anuj Kumar, Laxmikant Kattimani

Defenders: Sahil Panwar, Rafael Lopez Gomez, Matthew Kilgallon, Gurtej Singh, Mohammad Yasir, Tarif Akhand, Asish Rai

Midfielders: Adil Ahmed Khan, Sahil Tavora, Deependra Negi, Nestor Jesus Benitez, Marko Stankovic, Shankar Sampingiraj, Laldanmawia Ralte, Rohit Kumar, Gani Nigam, Nikhil Poojary

Forwards: Giles Barnes, Deyvison Rogerio Da Silva (Bobo), Marcelo Leite Pereira (Marcelinho), Abhisek Halder, Robin Singh

Prediction:

With the slate clean and this being their maiden season, Phil Brown will quickly need to find the winning combination. If Brown finds his playing eleven towards the beginning stages of the league, the team has the firepower to make a major statement in their maiden campaign.