Indian Super League's (ISL) second edition is less than two weeks away and all the eight teams have prepared hard ahead in the pre-season.
The inaugural season saw numerous former top-flight professionals from top European leagues battle it out in India and this time too some of the franchises have opted for new marque players in the team. With Chennaiyin FC retaining Elano and Mumbai City FC replacing Fredrik Ljungberg from his team-mate Nicolas Anelka as their marquee stars - champions Atletico de Kolkata, Kerala Blasters, NorthEast United FC, Pune City, Delhi Dynamos and FC Goa have all made chages to their roster.
In just one year, ISL has become the second most crowd-pulling sports event in India after cricket's Indian Premier League; and with 61 matches to be played around 70 days, once again we can expect big things from the following stars playing the competition as marquee players.
Roberto Carlos: When it comes to big former football stars playing in India, it can't get better than Roberto 'The Galactico' Carlos. The former Real Madrid star was snapped up by Delhi Dynamos as their manager-cum-marquee-player for the second season of the league. One of the best left-back of his time and a dead-ball speacilist, Carlos will look to showcase his outstanding skills in the ISL as well. Having Carlos in the dugout will give the young Indian players an opportunity to pick his brains and surely Delhi Dynamos will be a team to watch out for this time around just for that reason alone. Carlos replaces Alexandro Del Piero as the marquee signing for the team from the capital city.
Elano: From one Brazilian, we move onto another. Elano has been retained as the marquee player by Chennaiyin FC after his heroics last season. He won the Golden Boot award in ISL-1 and was one of the most consitent players on the pitch. The former Manchester City player was lauded for his deadly free-kicks and pin-point passes as he helped Chennaiyin to the semi-finals which they lost to Kerala Blasters. Elano would be joining on loan from Santos for the entire duration of the second edition of the ISL. His class and superior technical quality will definitely give the Chennai team an edge this season as well.
Helder Postiga: The Portuguese striker will be the marquee player for the defending champions - Atletico de Kolkata. The former Tottenham Hotspur striker is the most expensive player in this edition of the ISL. Postiga has represented Portugal in two World Cups and three Euro Championships. Postiga will be filling the shoes of Lucis Garcia from last season. The 32-year-old has scored 101 goals in 448 appearances, including 27 times for his national side. The presence of Postiga will definitely bolster the team, and once again ATK will be right up there challenging for the trophy.
Carlos Marchena: After their player-coach and marquee player David James decided not to participate in the second edition of ISL, Kerala signed Spain’s World Cup-winning member Carlos Marchena. The former Valencia centre-back has an attacking style of play and can also play in the midfield as a centreal defending midfielder. Last season the Sachin Tendulkar-owened Kerala lost in the finals and this time the team will be hoping that the welcome addition of Marchena gives them the boost they need so that they can go all the way. Marchena was a regular member of the Spanish national side from 2002 to 2011 and has two La Liga winners medal.
Nicolas Anelka: The Frenchman will be filling the shoes of Fredrik Ljungberg for ISL-2. Anelka played seven times for Mumbai last season and scored twice as they missed out on the playoffs but now he has not only been appointed as their marquee player but manager as well. But only time will tell whether the former Arsenal and Real Madrid striker still has enough in him to help Mumbai to the play-offs. This is his first stint as manager.
Adrian Mutu: The FC Pune City squad has gone through a massive overhaul before ISL-2 and one of the big names they have brought in is the former Chelsea forward, Mutu, who began his career with Romanian club Arges Pitesti and has played for top sides like Inter Milan, Fiorentina, Chelsea and Juventus. Mutu joined the Blues in 2003 from Parma but was released by the English side in October 2004 having failed a drug test for cocaine the previous month. During his peak, he was seen as one of the finest strikers in Serie A. He is also Pune's marquee player. He will replace former Italian striker David Trezeguet as Pune's marquee player.
Simao Sabrosa: The former Portugal and Barcelona winger has signed up as NorthEast United FC's marquee player. Simao made 85 appearances for Portugal and was part of the side that finished runners-up at the 2004 European Championship. He also won the Europa League with Atletico Madrid in 2010. The winger is known for his pace and has scored some brilliant goals in the past. NorthEast finished bottom of the table last year and the franchise will hope that Simao can bring some class and luck with him to the side from Guwahati. He will plays as NEUFC's marquee player in place of John Capdevil.
Lucio: Lucimar Ferreira da Silva, popularly known as Lucio, has signed up with FC Goa as marquee player. Lucio, who won the World Cup with Brazil in 2002 and was part of 2006 and 2010 finals, was recommended by the side's legendary coach Zico and he brings with him a bundle of top-flight experience. The Brazilian defender started his football career with Internacional at home before heading to Germany where he played for Bayern Leverkusen and Bayern Munich and won three Bundesliga titles.
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