We are halfway through the third edition of Indian Super League and the points table is very close. We have seen a lot of draws this season and it might not be wrong to say that all those stalemates are due the fact that the quality of the tournament has gone up.
The managers and staffs of all the teams have done a very good job in signing players who can add quality to their sides. The new players have made huge impacts on their clubs' performances and also have played a huge role in raising the standard of the league this season, but there are, as always, a few exceptions. Some players, who were signed with great expectations by their clubs, have relatively to completely failed to impress.
Here are five flop signings of this season.
#1 Gaston Sangoy (Mumbai City FC)
The 32-year-old forward was bought by Mumbai City FC from Qatari club Al-Wakrah with the hope that the player can add creativity and also more than a few goals to the team. However, the Argentine turned out to be a total disappointment.
Sangoy, didn't even make a single appearance for Mumbai after signing for them. The former Ajax man was injured from the start of the season, and his team was hopeful that the player will be back to full fitness towards the later part of the season. However, Mumbai were forced to look for a replacement after realizing that Sangoy won't be returning anytime soon.
Mumbai City FC were forced to play midfielders Sony Norde, Matias Defederico and Boithang Hoakip as the main man upfront whilst their key strikers Sunil Chhetri and Diego Forlan were not available. Guimaraes considered the Argentinean to be an important player for the team, but the forward let his manager down, big time.
#2 Arata Izumi (FC Pune City)
FC Pune City believed that they have made a great signing when they bought Indian midfielder Arata Izumi from I-League club Mumbai FC, but they were wrong. Arata Izumi has failed to put in consistent performances for Pune this season.
The only recognizable contribution that the attacking midfielder has made to his team is the tap-in goal that he scored against a desperately poor FC Goa side. Apart from that, Izumi has been almost invisible this season. The 34-year-old had scored five goals for Atletico de Kolkata last season but has been totally off-colour so far.
FC Pune City currently is placed seventh on the points table with just six points, and Izumi’s form is a big part of the equation. Can the midfielder turn the tables? The chances of that happening are very slim as he has not shown any signs of promise so far this season.
#3 Juan Belencoso (Atletico de Kolkata)
Belencoso was bought by Atletico de Kolkata from Indonesian club Person Bandung as a back-up option for marquee player Helder Postiga. But Belencoso was soon called into the fray after Postiga got injured in Kolkata's second match of the season against Kerala Blasters, but the Spaniard failed to step up.
The Spaniard has played all seven of Kolkata's games but he could only score his first goal against NorthEast United last week (an easy tap-in). The 35-year-old was wasteful and poor in all the games he started, and has failed to make any impact when he came on as a substitute.
Other Kolkata attackers like Iain Hume, Sameehg Doutie and Javi Lara have put in standard performances so far, but a misfiring Belencoso has been the weak link in the team. Atletico de Kolkata fans will be relieved that Postiga is back from injury. With the return of the Portuguese forward Kolkata will now have some sharpness upfront, unlike with Belencoso.
#4 Duwayne Kerr (Chennaiyin FC)
Duwayne Kerr was signed by defending ISL champions Chennaiyin FC as a replacement for their former goalkeeper Apoula Edel. Chennai team staff had hopes that the 29-year-old can replace Edel, who was very instrumental in the team's title-winning campaign last season, considering that he is the goalkeeper of the Jamaican national team. However, Kerr has failed to meet his team's expectations and has been a disappointment so far.
Kerr has only played three of Chennai's six games and has not kept a single clean sheet. On the other hand, Chennai have kept clean sheets in all the other three games. The Jamaican has conceded six goals from his three games and that is a very bad stat for a goalkeeper.
Kerr has also been very prone to mistakes this season and the match against Delhi Dynamos was a prime example. The signing of Kerr has not worked out well for Chennai and they might have to stick with Indian goalkeeper Karanjit Singh for the rest of the tournament.
#5 Michael Chopra (Kerala Blasters)
Michael Chopra was resigned by Kerala Blasters this season after he left the club in 2014. The English striker was a flop in the first edition of the ISL and he is no different this season.
Chopra has only scored one goal this season despite playing all the seven Kerala games (5 starts and 2 substitute appearances). Even though the English striker has been trying to contribute much more to his team, the 32-year-old striker's physical condition (at least aesthetically) looks poor, and might be the holding the former Newcastle man back.
The Blasters have other foreign forwards like Kervens Belfort, Duckens Nazon and Antonio German in their team, but Kerala manager Steve Coppell has preferred to play Chopra up front. The English manager has received a lot of criticism from the fans for his decision to stick with the former West Ham graduate.E
Even Indian forward Thongkhosiem Haokip, who is yet to make an appearance for Kerala, deserves a chance ahead of Chopra. It is sad to see Haokip, who scored three goals from six appearances last season, sitting on the bench when Chopra plays on the pitch.
Chopra has 'Rocky' written on the back of his jersey but he hasn't lived up to that name so far.
