Ranking every marquee foreigner in ISL

Many top-rated World Cup players have been included in this list.

The Indian Super League (ISL) has successfully surpassed over 10 years and is currently in its 11th season. Over the years, a lot has changed about the league as it has expanded to currently have 13 teams playing each other! It started with only eight teams, with a lot of ups and downs marking the top league system of Indian football.

In the first few seasons, the ISL organizers tried to increase the popularity levels by adding the ‘marquee player’ rule for every team. Each side had to sign a well-known name in football, with most opting to sign iconic names from European football.

These marquee players ranged from FIFA World Cup winners like Alessandro Del Piero and Roberto Carlos and other superstars like Diego Forlan and Robert Pires. Here we rank all the marquee foreign players in ISL history.

23. Carlos Marchena

Kerala Blasters roped in renowned Spanish defender Carlos Marchena as their 2015 ISL marquee player. Unlike David James, Marchena wasn’t reliable at all. He only made one appearance in a forgettable stint with the Tuskers.

22. Roberto Carlos

Delhi Dynamos brought on a Brazilian football legend in Roberto Carlos as their marquee player in the second ISL campaign. But the left-back’s lack of fitness issues and injury problems held him back from giving the fans what they wanted. He only made three appearances for Delhi before transitioning into a coaching role.

21. Freddie Ljungberg

Arsenal legend Freddie Ljungberg was Mumbai City FC’s first-ever marquee player. But he arrived at a point where his legs had given up and he failed to maintain any sort of fitness. Ljungberg was restricted to only four appearances for the Islanders, failing to score a goal or get an assist.

20. John Arne Riise

Liverpool legend John Arne Riise was Chennaiyin FC’s third marquee signing in 2016, but he failed to make the same impact as Elano. He only made six appearances, failing to get any goal contributions or help them keep a clean sheet as the Marina Machans finished the campaign in seventh place.

19. Dimitar Berbatov

Kerala Blasters managed to bring in ex-Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov to improve their forward line for the 2017/18 season.

It ended up being quite a bitter experience for both parties. He only scored once in nine appearances and left on a bitter note, slamming head coach David James long-ball tactics and making very little impact.

18. Robert Pires

FC Goa opted to bring in some French flavor to their first-ever ISL squad by signing Arsenal legend Robert Pires for their debut campaign.

The Gaurs finished in second place in the league phases and reached the playoffs, but Pires had little impact on that. He only scored one goal in eight appearances, lacking that spark many expected of him.

17. Alessandro Del Piero

At the age of 40, Italian legend Alessandro Del Piero wanted to have his last dance as a footballer in India. He joined Delhi Dynamos, but his stint wasn’t really that exciting. He drew big crowds wherever he played, but only scored one goal in 10 appearances – which came through a trademark free-kick.

16. David Trezeguet

David Trezeguet made a surprise switch to Indian football in the final stages of his career to build more hype for FC Pune City.

He had a relatively forgettable stint, scoring just two goals in 9 appearances as his side finished in sixth place in the 2014 season.

15. Nicolas Anelka

Mumbai City FC hoped to add some serious firepower to their frontline in 2015 when they managed to sign powerhouse French striker Nicolas Anelka.

The results, however, were inefficient. He only scored two goals in 13 appearances, which was poor for someone with his standards.

14. Joan Capdevilla

Former Spain international Joan Capdevila was roped in by NorthEast  United as their first-ever marquee player.

He was brought in to add steel to their backline and also some creativity down the wide areas. In his first (and only) season, Capdevila helped the Highlanders keep three clean sheets in 12 games but failed to inspire them as they finished in last place in the 2014 campaign.

13. Mohammed Sissoko

Former Juventus midfielder Mohammed Sissoko was signed by FC Pune City as their third marquee signing. He actually produced a few sturdy performances and even scored twice in 13 appearances, but couldn’t inspire them to get into the playoffs as Pune City only finished the campaign in sixth place.

12. Didier Zokora

NorthEast United roped in Didier Zokora as their marquee foreigner signing in 2016 to add more steel to their midfield. He only had one assist in 14 appearances but worked hard to help them get positive results. Zokora’s tenacious performances helped the Highlanders get a fifth-place finish in the 2016 campaign.

11. Adrian Mutu

Former Chelsea striker Adrian Mutu was FC Pune City’s second marquee signing after the first one failed to impress. Mutu at least managed to play 10 matches for them, scoring four goals and providing an assist. Despite that, Pune City only finished in seventh place in the 2015 ISL campaign.

10. Robbie Keane

Ex-Liverpool man Robbie Keane came in as ATK’s marquee striker for the 2017-18 ISL campaign, as the club hoped he could instill leadership and be a goal machine for them. To his credit, Keane scored six goals in nine appearances but failed to uplift them. He even had a short stint as a player manager, but ATK ended up finishing in ninth place in the campaign.

9. Simao Sabrosa

NorthEast United managed to get a major upgrade on their marquee signing in the 2015 ISL campaign by getting Portuguese winger Simao Sabrosa.

To his credit, Sabrosa was able to produce a string of impressive performances. He scored three goals and provided two assists in 10 appearances for them, getting them to a respectable fifth-place finish and missing out on the top-4 by a whisker.

8. Helder Postiga

Atletico de Kolkata added some firepower to their no.9 position by signing Portuguese forward Helder Postiga to be Luis Garcia’s replacement. He only made one appearance in his first season in 2015, scoring a brace on his debut before picking up a season-ending injury.

The Kolkata side kept him for the 2016 campaign and Postiga produced a few memorable performances, scoring two goals and providing three assists in 11 games. He helped them win the 2016 ISL title with his important goal contributions and left Indian football on a high.

7. Lucio

FC Goa announced former AC Milan centre-back Lucio as their marquee player and captain for the 2015 season. He had a very good first season, helping them keep two clean sheets and reach the final, where they ultimately lost to Chennaiyin FC. He made five appearances in the 2016 campaign due to certain issues but proved to be an efficient signing for the Gaurs thanks to his leadership skills and never-say-die attitude.

6. Aaron Hughes

Northern Ireland centre-back Aaron Hughes added a lot of steel and power to Kerala Blasters’ backline in the 2016 signing. Despite not being that flashy a marquee signing, he did his job perfectly to help them frustrate opposition teams.

Hughes came off playing in Euro 2016 to help the Tuskers keep four clean sheets in 11 games, averaging five clearances per game. He helped them fight their way to the 2016 ISL final, where they lost on penalties to Atletico de Kolkata.

5. David James

Prominent English footballer David James became Kerala Blasters’ first marquee signing as they wanted a class goalkeeper. To his credit, James produced several stellar performances to help them reach the first-ever ISL final. He picked up five clean sheets in 12 appearances for the Tuskers and would go on to manage them in the future too.

4. Luis Garcia

Atletico de Kolkata brought some Spanish flavor in former Liverpool man Luis Garcia as their marquee player in the first ISL season. To his credit, Garcia showed an impressive attitude with his performances and was heavily involved in their success. He made 13 appearances for them, scoring two goals and providing two assists to help them lift the first-ever ISL title.

3. Diego Forlan

Mumbai City made a massive statement of intent by signing the 2010 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot winner Diego Forlan for the 2016 season.

It turned out to be a prolific one as Forlan scored five goals for them, which included a memorable hat-trick in their 5-0 win over Kerala Blasters. He powered them to finish the league stages in first place and reach the playoffs, where they narrowly lost to the eventful champions Atletico de Kolkata.

2. Florent Malouda

Delhi Dynamos managed to produce a real coup in signing former France international Florent Malouda as the replacement to their initial marquee signing Roberto Carlos in 2015. The Frenchman had a brilliant first season, delivering eight assists in 16 appearances to help them achieve a top-4 finish and get into the playoffs.

He was retained in the 2016 campaign, where he scored three goals and provided three assists in 16 appearances to help them towards a top-3 finish in the league stages and get to the playoffs. While he failed to win the ISL title, Malouda was impressively consistent with his goal contributions and greatly elevated Delhi Dynamos’ qualities during his stay.

1. Elano

Elano would arguably go down as potentially the best marquee signing made by an ISL club. He was roped in by Chennaiyin FC and spent two seasons with them. In the debut campaign, he scored eight goals in the ISL to win the Golden Boot and help them get to the playoffs. In the 2015 campaign, Elano had four goals and three assists and played a huge role in helping the Marina Machans win their first-ever title.

Even though he was involved in some controversy after the ISL final with FC Goa counterparts and his ISL tenure ended in bitter fashion, Elano had 12 goals and five assists for Chennaiyin FC in the two campaigns and performed at a very high level despite his age.

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