In a country like India, to be boasting of a league fourth most attended in the world is an achievement by itself, not to mention its popularity in Asia that garners quite a lot of attention for not being a particularly great footballing region.
The grand success of the Indian Super League (ISL) in its inaugural season had a lot of talking points around the world – from improving the standards of the game in India to the future of Indian football.
Football in India, immensely popular at one point of time but now confined to a few pockets of the country, has taken giant leaps towards restoring some of its lost pride. The result of the first ISL season has also somewhere contributed in generating the kind of fan-following that the one-year-old league now commands.
One of the most popular franchises in the league, Atletico de Kolkata lifted the trophy last year beating another powerhouse Kerala Blasters FC at Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium. The team, co-owned by former Indian cricket captain and a self-confessed football fan Sourav Ganguly, was the first franchise to be officially launched in the ISL and also the most expensive of the eight.
The team also shares a blood line with former La Liga champions Atletico Madrid. ATK set the tone of the tournament with a 3-0 win over Mumbai City FC in the opening match of the ISL in front of 60,000 odd fans at the Salt Lake Stadium in the City of Joy. Their Spanish DNA soon made them the team to beat, and despite suffering a few hiccups during the middle stages of the league, ATK emerged as the deserving winners.
The city of Kolkata and the 'Beautiful Game' share a long history. Football has always been a big passion for this sport-obsessed city and is deeply rooted in its vast cultural heritage. Local neighbourhoods, corridors, clubs, even the roadside tea stalls are not left untouched by football madness.
Football is not just a sport or religion in Kolkata but faith and obsession. When football takes over, you just cannot escape without beholding the sight of the city.
With a strong backing from football great Pele, who has committed his support to the club, ATK will be looking to emulate their first year's success and give the city another reason to love their beautiful game.
Let's take a look at their overall team structure for ISL 2.
Marquee Player
Helder Postiga: The Portugal international, who played alongside Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, is probably the best marquee signing in this year's edition. Postiga brings with him a wealth of high-class experience and can be expected to finish as one of the top scorers this season. The 32-year-old has represented Portugal in two World Cups and three European Championships, helping his team reach the Euro 2004 final. Postiga last played for Spanish club Deportivo de La Coruna as a striker. The prolific forward has earlier turned up for clubs like Porto, Valencia, Lazio, Sporting Lisbon and Tottenham Hotspur. The presence of Postiga will definitely bolster the team for this season and his sheer ability to score goals can lead ATK to their second triumph.
Goalkeeping
The ATK goal will be marked by Spainiard Juan Calatayud. He most recently played for Hungarian club Videoton FC and will replace Apoula Edima Edel Bete who switched allegiance to Chennaiyin FC. The 35-year-old Calatayud represented Andalusians' first team and went on to appear in 36 La Liga games in two separate seasons. In July 2008, Calatayud joined second-tier side Hercules CF on a two-year deal. Calatayud was again an undisputed starter in the 2010-11 season, but Valencian were immediately relegated. In July he returned to the top division, signing with RCD Mallorca for two years. Being a graduate of Malaga CF's youth syatem, Calatayud spent a considerable time playing with Malaga, Mallorca and Getafe. He brings with him the experience of playing against the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. However, there is a lack of good back-up goalkeeper. Indian shot-stopper Amrinder Singh has not been in the best of forms of late and young Kunzang Bhutia lacks competitive experience.
Defence
ATK possessed a stellar defence in season one and it was one of the primary reasons why they were the champions. Considering first year's performance, the club's thinktank retained the core of their defence in Josemi, Arnab and Denzil. Rahim Nabi, often known as India’s ‘Mr Versatile’, can play as a defender, midfielder or striker and has essayed all these roles with equal application and consistency. Apart from these four, the defence will revolve around Nallapan Mohanraj, Augustin Fernandes and Luis Espinosa Arroyo. The opponents are expected to have a tough time breaking ATK's strong defence.
Midfield
The game of football is won and lost in the midfield as it is one such place where the heart of the team lies. ATK's defence is commanded by Spainards and this year they have added 29-year-old Spanish midfielder Javi Lara from La Liga side Eibar, bolstering coach Antonio Lopez Habas' foreign options for the upcoming season. A multi-faceted midfielder who operates from the left of the field, Lara has scored 20 goals in his career and is widely regarded as a fine spot-kick specialist. In addition to that, ATK have Jaime Gavilan and Borja Fernandez, Botswana's Ofentse Nato, India's Jewel Raja, Clifford Miranda, Arata Izumi, South Africa's Sameehg Doutie and Cape Verde's Valmiro Lopes to complete their roster. Overall, the ATK midfield wears a versatile look and the team woould hope that the absence of Jofre and former Marquee player Luis Garcia won't hurt their chances this year.
Forward
ATK's attack features two of the best strikers in the league - Postiga and Iain Hume. Ace Canadian striker Hume, who played with the Kerala Blasters last season, will now don the red and white jersey for the second edition of the tournament. Hume was the hero of last edition and was awarded the Golden Ball for his stellar performances for Kerala Blasters. It doesn't require much of a mathematics to know that the combination of Postiga and Hume can tear apart any defence on their day. Apart from the duo, Indian forwards Baljit Sahni, Sushil Kumar Singh and Nadong Bhutia will share the goal-scoring responsibilities. However, ATK fans will surely miss the somersaults of Fikru Teferra, who will now be seen with the Chennaiyin FC.
Players to watch out for
Juan Calatayud, Rahim Nabi, Helder Postiga, Iain Hume and Javi Lara.
Chances this season
With their intelligent picks, ATK look a strong side on paper and are expected to defend their title. ATK have strengthened their squad by bringing in some talented players like Postiga, Hume, Lara and by retaining strong performers like Arnab Mondal, Borja and Nato. However, a busy schedule and lack of a good second-choice goalkeeper and quality Indian strikers can hurt their chances in the long run. ATK were at the forefront of both ISL auction as well as draft, as they picked up six players to fill their domestic quota of 13 players. ATK managed to bag two players in the ISL auction in Arata Izumi and Rino Anto besides Amrinder Singh, Augustin Fernandes, Lalchawnkima and Kunzang Bhutia in the draft. The new signings are expected to bolster ATK's bench strength and hopefully the fans will find more reasons to cheer for their new stars and support them in their quest to defend the title.
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