'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Indian Super League, for sponsorship reasons, has titled their Player of the Season award Hero of the League. Florent Malouda, Stiven Mendoza, Iain Hume and Sunil Chhetri have all won the coveted award in the previous seasons.
Only two of them are still playing in India, with the former two now plying their trade in Europe. The Chennaiyin attacker, in particular, has gone on to play for New York City in Major League Soccer and Amiens in Ligue 1.
The other two have become household names in Indian football.
It, indeed, is a great honour in Indian football today, and we’ll see numerous big names looking join the celebrated club.
Here are five players we expect to be in the running to win the award this season.
5. Emiliano Alfaro
Scoring 14 goals over two seasons for NorthEast United and Pune City, Emiliano Alfaro has been nothing short of exceptional in India. While he proved a solid goalscorer in a poor NorthEast side in his debut season, playing alongside free-scoring winger and one-time Golden Boot winner Marcelinho converted him into a creator; he provided three key assists last season for Pune City. He, 30, will only get even better under new manager Miguel Angel Portugal this season, with title favourites Pune signing a strong supporting cast, including India international strikers Robin Singh and Ashique Kuruniyan and top-class foreign players like Marko Stankovic and Diego Carlos.
4. Manuel Lanzarote
Not a lot was expected of Manuel Lanzarote when he signed for Goa as a 33-year-old Segunda Division veteran last season. He proved he could still go as he scored 13 and created a further six, with the Gaurs reaching playoff stages; his excellent chemistry with Golden Boot winner Ferran Corominas was one of the highlights of the season. Now playing alongside Nigerian forward Kalu Uche and 30-year-old Everton Santos, he’ll probably pick up where’d left off last season. Although he had to see his new club ATK lose 2-0 at home in his first game as the skipper, he’d surely bounce back with help from manager Steve Coppell.
3. Tim Cahill
The more hardcore fan base isn’t happy with Jamshedpur’s signing Tim Cahill and perhaps, rightfully so. While it’s true he brings attention to the new club and the competition by extension, the fans aren’t convinced he could deliver at the age of 39. The Australia legend, however, had a 13-goal season only in 2016-17, with his club Melbourne City finishing fourth in A-League before turning up for Millwall in the Championship in 2017-18. While he must have lost a yard of pace, he could still be a menace in the penalty box. Perhaps, he could even playmake alongside Michael Soosairaj as a number 10 of sorts.
2. Sunil Chhetri
Talking about one world-football veteran brings us to another in India’s own Sunil Chhetri. Much like the Australian, he’s proved not all strikers decline with age. The 34-year-old scored 15 goals and provided six assists across two competitions for the Karnataka club last season as he guided them to a first-place finish in the club’s debut season in the cash-rich competition. He was even rather fittingly awarded the Hero of the League award ahead of title winners Raphael Augusto and Jeje Lalpekhlua. He’ll look to become the first two-time Hero of the League award winner in the competition’s short history.
1. Gregory Nelson
“He improved massively in the last 3-4 months of last season, and he has started off fantastic for us this year,” said Chennai coach John Gregory, while discussing Raphael Augusto after the 1-0 loss to Bengaluru. “We have to make sure we don't rely on him too much.” The Brazil midfielder is key to Chennai’s title defence this season, but one player who’ll likely be as vital as him is Gregory Nelson. The 30-year-old Dutch winger had a rather slow start to his season in 2017-18 but soon became a key player, even creating five goals in three playoff fixtures against Goa and Bengaluru. He, who’s relatively young for a foreign talent, will prove a solid contender for the Hero of the League award this season.
