ISL 2019-20: Key players who will be missing in the opening gameweek

Some players will be out with suspension while others will be absent because of their respective injuries.

As the ISL 2019-20 season kick off on October 20, there are a few players who will be unavailable to play in the forthcoming gameweek. Some of these players picked up a suspension in the last season, while others will be absent because of their injuries.

FC Goa midfielder Ahmed Jahouh will miss the first match for the Gaurs, as they take on Chennaiyin FC at home on 23rd October.

The Moroccan midfielder was sent off in last season's finale against Bengaluru FC, where a late Rahul Bheke header won the title for the Blues. However later the Gaurs were guided by Sergio Lobera to their maiden Super Cup success. The Moroccan is a vital cog in midfield for Lobera and it will be interesting to see how the Spaniard lines up his team without the presence of the 31-year-old.

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Among the other absentees, Jobby Justin and Anas Edathodika are also suspended for ATK. The two new signings for the Kolkata outfit will not be present for the curtainraiser in Kochi against Kerala Blasters. Anas was sent off during a Super Cup game for his former side Kerala Blasters against Indian Arrows. So, he will miss only the first game. Whereas Justin will be out of action for the first three matches this season. The Kerala-born striker was slapped with a six-match ban by the AIFF Disciplinary Committee last season, but he has already served half of it. The former East Bengal man will only be available for action from November 9th, when ATK welcome Jamshedpur FC at home.

Antonio Lopez Habas will also be missing Australian attacking midfielder and former Melbourne City man, Dario Vidosic. The 32-year-old Australian has not been registered for the upcoming ISL season and upon being asked about his availability, the ATK manager revealed that he is injured.

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Similarly, NorthEast United FC fan-favourite Federico Gallego has been retained by the NEUFC management, but the Uruguayan attacking midfielder will miss the first few weeks of action for the Highlanders.

One of the biggest absentees this season will be Amarjit Singh Kiyam. The India midfielder has had a meteoric rise to the national football scene. Singh led the India U-17 side at the FIFA U17-World Cup back in 2017 and since then, he has only strengthened his game and improved tremendously. The 20-year-old has joined ISL outfit Jamshedpur FC, but is expected to be out for the first few weeks after he fractured his arm in the national camp ahead of India's game against Oman.

Lastly, as we all know, Indian national team defender Sandesh Jhingan is also out with an ACL injury and won't be available for Kerala Blasters and the Blue Tigers for their matches ahead.