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The fifth season of the Indian Super League is set to resume on January 25, 2019, with a match scheduled to be played between Kerala Blasters and ATK.
Check ISL Live for more updates on ISL.
Things are bound to get interesting at this stage of the league. Although all 10 teams still have a mathematical chance of making it to the semifinal stage -- Kerala Blasters, Delhi Dynamos, and Chennaiyin -- the bottom three teams are all but out of contention.
Bengaluru FC and FC Goa are the only 2 teams who have played 11 matches thus far. Rest of the teams have played 12 matches each. Bengaluru FC are currently the table toppers with 27 points by virtue of 8 wins and 3 draws.
Players such as Ferran Corominas, Modou Sougou, and Bartholomew Ogbeche have stolen the show. Amrinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Adil Khan, Michael Soosairaj, Udanta Singh, Rowllin Borges, Subhashish Bose, Farukh Choudhary, Sahal Abdul Samad, Rahul Bheke are some of the Indian players who have performed exceptionally well in the season so far.
However, there have also been some big names who have flopped in the competition. In this article, we will take a look at the top 5 players (Indian or foreign) who have underperformed. These are the players who have performed way below their potential this ISL season:
#5 Anas Edathodika (Kerala Blasters)
Anas missed Kerala Blasters' first 3 matches of the league due to a three-match ban he had received while playing for Jamshedpur FC last season.
The Malappuram-born player has played the full 90 minutes in 5 matches this ISL season. However, his performance has been far from satisfactory. Nine tackles, 6 Interceptions, 23 clearances, and 6 blocks -- the centre-back would not be happy with his numbers.
He was a senior defender in the Indian national team until recently -- when he announced his retirement from International football a day after the Blue Tigers' made an exit from the Asian Cup 2019.
The 31-year-old has the time to devote his complete energy to his club career now. And even though Kerala's chances of making it to the playoffs are grim, Anas is expected to come out all guns blazing in the final stage of the competition.
Also see : Fantasy Premier League , Fantasy Premier League Tips, EPL Transfer News
#4 Carlos Salom (Chennaiyin FC)
Chennaiyin FC are struggling at the bottom of the ISL table. The curse of the defending champions has struck them hard. The Marina Machans have conceded the maximum number of goals -- 24 -- in the season so far. Meanwhile, they have just managed to score 13 goals in their 12 matches.
A reason for their poor performance is misfiring forwards. Palestine forward Carlos Salom has been extremely poor. There was a lot of talk and excitement around the new signing of the veteran player when he arrived. However, it has all died down now.
The Centre-Forward has only found the back of the net once in the 11 matches he has played. The 31-year-old also has a disappointing goal conversion rate of just 5%. A passing accuracy of 50.31% is not something he would be proud of too.
The Chennaiyin forward got a good break and needs to perform well in the remaining 8 matches otherwise he will have his name etched amongst the biggest flops of the season.
#3 Marcelinho (FC Pune City)
Marcelo Leite Pereira or Marcelinho was fantastic for FC Pune City last season as he scored 8 goals and assisted 7 in the 17 matches he played.
The Brazilian forward does not even look a pale shadow of what he was last time. In the 10 matches played, Marcelinho has scored 3 goals and assisted 2. The Rio de Janeiro-born player will be miffed with the poor goal conversion rate of 11% and passing accuracy of 47.52%.
The Stallions' number 10 is not amongst the worst performers in the league but fans still expect a lot more from a player of his calibre.
Pune City are currently placed at 7th position in the ISL table with 11 points from 12 matches. Marcelinho will need to up the ante and bring out his best again if he wants to give his team a chance of making it to the knockout stage.
Marcelinho found some form right before the break. His goal proved to be the decisive one in the 1-0 win over Kerala Blaster on December 7, 2018. The striker also scored the first goal in the 2-0 win over FC Goa on December 11, 2018. The Brazilian will hope he can continue the good run after the break as well.
#2 CK Vineeth (Kerala Blasters)
It is rumoured that the Kannur-born forward CK Vineeth will be making a switch from the struggling Kerala Blasters to Chennaiyin FC mid-season.
Also Read: ISL 2018-19: Kerala Blasters' CK Vineeth close to joining Chennaiyin FC?
Even though the Marina Machans do not have a realistic chance of making a mark in the ISL this season, they have the AFC Cup to look forward to. Revamping the side may have seemed like a good idea as their forwards were struggling.
However, Vineeth has not been in the greatest of form himself and it remains doubtful if he will be able to make a mark for the Chennai-based franchise in case he joins them.
The 30-year-old has played 10 matches in the season so far but has found the back of the net on only 2 occasions -- extremely poor for a renowned striker who has spent 585 minutes on the pitch.
Serbian forward Slavisa Stojanovic and the Slovenian Matej Poplatnik have also not done exceptionally well for Kerala and that is one of the reasons why they are reeling at 8th place on the table.
#1 Jeje Lalpekhlua (Chennaiyin FC)
Scoring no goals in 11 matches does not justify the nickname of 'Mizo Sniper.' Yes, Jeje Lalpekhlua has been going through a goal drought in the ISL. The 28-year-old could only manage 7 shots in the 11 matches he played for Chennaiyin FC this season.
However, the Hnahthial-born played scored a goal in India's 4-1 win against Thailand in the opening match of the Asian Cup. Even though the Blue Tigers were eliminated as a result of back to back defeats in the remaining two group games, Jeje would be delighted to have finally found the back of the net.
Jeje played a total of 102 minutes during the Asian Cup. Questions will still be asked on his ability unless he makes a strong comeback after the break and finds his name on the scoresheet in at least a few of the remaining 8 matches in the group stage.
Which other players do you think have been the underperformers this season? Share your opinions in the comments section below.
