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FC Pune City are one of the strongest outfits in the Indian Super League. The franchise is owned by the Wadhawan group, actor Hrithik Roshan and the Italian football club Fiorentina, with whom they have a technical agreement. With the ISL almost upon us, here are 5 things you should know about them:
#1 Great international pedigree
In David Trezeguet and Kostas Katsouranis, FC Pune City have some serious starpower as both of them have been to major international tournaments and experienced success. The Frenchman played 71 times for his country, while Katsouranis is still going strong with a 114 appearances.
While Trezeguet was a part of the French 1998 World Cup and 2000 Euro winning squad, Katsouranis led the Greek squad in Brazil this year. With the presence of a world class striker such as Trezeguet and a solid defensive midfielder like Katsouranis running the team, it is quite clear that the team will be very tough to beat. They will look to prevent the opposition from scoring and try and catch them unawares on the counter, using the abilities of Trezeguet to the maximum.
#2 Of fathers and sons
Coach Franco Colomba will be overseeing his son Davide, who plays in midfield as FC Pune City is the only team in the ISL, that features a father-son duo in the team.
While Colomba Sr is known for having managed teams in the Serie A, Serie B and the Serie C, his son Davidehas been a regular in the Serie B circuit back home in Italy. It will be interesting to see if coach Colomba chooses to start with his son, and whether Davide will be able to show enough application that his father puts his faith in him and makes him a regular in the team.
#3 Kashmir\'s connect
Mehrajuddin Wadoo is the link that the city shares with Kashmir. The burly, no nonsense midfielder has impressed the Italian coach with his hard hitting and physical style of play in the warm-up games leading up to the ISL.
Wadoo had some panic moments, when the team was training in Fiorentina as he was unable to establish contact with his family (during the floods) but it was eventually sorted out. Wadoo will be one of the players to watch out for in the ISL. Having earned 31 caps for the nation, he was instrumental in the 2005 SAFF Cup final victory against Bangladesh, where he scored a goal in the 2-0 win.
#4 FC Pune City full of diversity
The FC Pune City team is as diverse as it is united. Picture this — the club has players from nine different countries across the world. From, Italy to France and from Equatorial Guinea to Burkina Faso, the team has an interesting mix of players.
Not just that, but a total of eight different languages are spoken in the dressing room. From Park Kwang -Il's Korean to David Trezeguet's French, there is a wide range. For the others there is a choice of Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Greek, Hindi, English among others to choose from. The team does speak one common language though — Football.
#5 Filmdom
For a team united by football there is another shared passion amongst the players — the silver screen. While Joaquim Abranches is a fan of the Goal trilogy, David Colomba, Coach Franco's son, is a fan of the Russell Crowe flick — Gladiator.
Goalkeepers Lalit Thapa and Arindam Bhattacharya are fans of Hatchiko: A Dog's Tale and the Rocky series respectively. The team, when not on the football pitch, likes to delve into the finer nuances of films that inspire, so that they bring along with themselves, their own brand of inspiration to the pitch.
