Three East Bengal players who can benefit from Madih Talal's influence

Madih Talal impressed with his skills in ISL 10.

East Bengal have been working diligently in the transfer market to bolster their squad with quality players ahead of the 2024-25 season. The Red & Gold Brigaders had a topsy-turvy 2023-24 campaign, winning the Kalinga Super Cup but only managing an eighth-place finish in the Indian Super League (ISL) and missing out on a playoff spot.

Henceforth, Carles Cuadrat is ambitious to achieve big things in his second season as East Bengal boss. In one of the key moves made in the off-season, his side has been able to rope in the brilliant Madih Talal on a free transfer after witnessing his heroics for Punjab FC in the previous campaign.

Madih Talal took the ISL by storm, tormenting teams with his trickery, creativity and efficient nature – scoring six goals and providing 10 assists! He will now look to bring that missing spark to East Bengal’s attack.

Not only will Madih Talal look to directly inspire positive results for the Kolkata giants, but his arrival can also spell good news for several East Bengal players.

In particular, the attacking players can benefit from having an intelligent player like Talal, who excels in getting the best out of those around him. Here we look at the three East Bengal players that can benefit from Mahdi Talal’s presence.

3. Nandhakumar Sekar

Nandhakumar Sekar had a pretty decent debut season with East Bengal, scoring nine goals across all competitions. This included five goals in the ISL, but what troubled him was a lack of consistency. Despite his goal-scoring prowess, Sekar could never really stretch his goal form across many games, with his strikes coming at irregular intervals. But he could probably benefit from someone like Talal feeding him into the space going forward.

Sekar might not be able to dribble past many bodies to score, but possesses impressive instinct and his movement is often very clever in the final third. If he can form an understanding with the new foreign star, Sekar can receive the ball in better areas that can increase his goal-scoring potential.

Of course, Nandha will need to glisten his finishing skills and strive to make himself more consistent, but at least now he has a creative beacon that can find him in the empty spaces in and around the box.

2. Naorem Mahesh Singh

The 2023-24 season was a frustrating one for Naorem Mahesh Singh, mostly as he was torn between club and national duty. In 21 appearances, Mahesh only had four goals and two assists, which was a bit underwhelming comparing his nine-goal contributions in fewer games in the 2022-23 campaign. But perhaps Mahesh has now received the bolt needed to get him back to his best in the form of Talal.

Firstly, the arrival of the new midfielder should reduce the creative burden that Singh has had to carry in recent years.

He can now play a more free role and get the license to move around the final third to be a menace for opponents. Mahesh excels in the free-attacking role and has enough quality to create a special chemistry with Talal. Perhaps the French midfielder can help Naorem score more goals by creating room for him inside the box and playing more passes to him in empty spaces. Singh can also use his creative brilliance to help Talal score goals and once their mentalities click, East Bengal can get a menacing duo in their attacking third.

1. Dimitrios Diamantakos

East Bengal have not just signed Talal in a massive coup to their foreigner’s core, but also roped in Dimitrios Diamantakos. This comes after the Greek striker scored 13 goals in the ISL last season, winning the ISL Golden Boot and enjoying a clinical campaign on a personal level.

He scored against nine different teams, including three goals in two games against Mohun Bagan. But Diamantakos was only able to do that because he had the creative backup at Kerala Blasters and fortunately he should get a promising playmaker behind him pulling the strings in Madih Talal.

The 31-year-old forward has proven himself as a ruthless finisher who has a great amount of variety in putting away chances, be it grounded opportunities or scoring headers. Madih Talal will love playing with a decisive figure like Diamantakos ahead of him and will look to form a devastating partnership as soon as possible.

But once Dimitrios can form that link with the French midfielder and Talal starts putting in clever passes into the box for him, the Greek forward should maintain his reputation as a goal machine and win many games for East Bengal.

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