Hélder Postiga (Atlético de Kolkata)
Hélder Manuel Marques Postiga, a Portuguese footballer returns to Atlético de Kolkata as a striker for a second successive season.
After beginning at Porto, where he won eight items of silverware along the way, he amassed Primeira Liga totals of 193 games and 54 goals over 11 seasons, with that club, Sporting and Rio Ave. He also played in six foreign countries, most notably in Spain where he totalled 27 goals in 99 La Liga matches for three teams.
A Portuguese international since 2003, Postiga represented the country in two World Cups and three European Championships, helping the nation reach the final at Euro 2004.
On 29 July 2015, Postiga signed as the marquee player of Indian Super League franchise Atlético de Kolkata; at 32, he was the youngest such player in the competition, and was deemed by the management to be less injury-prone than his predecessor Luis GarcÃa.[21] He made his debut on 3 October in the opening game of the season, scoring twice in a 3“2 win at Chennaiyin FC but leaving the game with an injury;[22] he made no further appearances, as his team went on to be eliminated by precisely that opponent in the play-off semi-finals. He made his Atlético return on 12 August 2016, as their marquee player.
John Arne Riise (Chennaiyin F.C.)
John Arne Semundseth, a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a left-back and a central midfielder signed in for the Indian Super League club Chennaiyin F.C. on a two- month contract this season.
With 110 caps, he is the most capped player for the Norway national team. He was named in the Norway squad for UEFA Euro 2000 but did not play in the tournament. Riise scored 16 goals before his retirement from international duty in 2013. He spent seven years playing for Premier League side Liverpool, in which he won many honours, including the 2004“05 UEFA Champions League, before moving to Roma in 2008.
On 24 August 2015, Indian Super League side Delhi Dynamos had confirmed the signing of Riise for the 2015 tournament. On 11 March 2016, Riise announced on his Twitter page that he had signed for Aalesunds FK, marking his return to the club at which he began his career. Not too long after signing the contract, Riise decided to take a break from professional football, stating a loss of motivation fuelled the decision. He stated that he would return to football before officially retiring. On 18 August 2016, Riise returned from retirement to play for Indian Super League club Chennaiyin F.C. on a two month contract, as a marquee signing for the Indian club. Co-owner Vita Dani said that he was "delighted" at the signing, and praised Riise's "exceptional" experience as a player. Riise's contract is set to terminate in October, when he will presumably retire from football permanently.
Florent Malouda (Delhi Dynamos)
Florent Johan Malouda, a French professional footballer will play as a left winger for Delhi Dynamos the forthcoming ISL season. On 23 August 2015, Malouda signed for Indian Super League side Delhi Dynamos managed by Roberto Carlos, and with his renewal he has been elevated as their marquee player for 2016.
He spent most of his career at Lyon and Chelsea, winning four consecutive Ligue 1 titles with the former and the UEFA Champions League in 2012 with the latter, among other honours.
A France international since 2004, Malouda represented "Les Bleus" on 80 occasions, including in two World Cups and two European Championships. He was part of the French team which reached the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final.
Lúcio (FC Goa)
Lucimar Ferreira da Silva, commonly known as Lúcio, is a Brazilian footballer returns to represent FC Goa of the Indian Super League as a central defender for the second year in succession.
He is a strong defender with good aerial play, who also adds presence in the attack. Lúcio began his professional career in 1998 with Sport Club Internacional. After three years in the club, he moved to Bayer Leverkusen, with whom he reached the 2002 Champions League final against Real Madrid of Spain. He scored a header in the final, which Real Madrid won with the score of 2“1. In 2004, he arrived at Bayern Munich, where he won one German Cup and three Bundesliga titles. Since coach Louis van Gaal did not have a place for him at Bayern, he decided to search for a new team. He moved to Inter in the summer of 2009, and helped Inter Milan win the 2010 Champions League against his former club Bayern Munich.
With Brazil, Lúcio has accumulated a number of significant accomplishments, winning the 2002 World Cup, 2005 Confederations Cup and 2009 Confederations Cup.
On 7 June 2015 it was confirmed that Lúcio had signed for FC Goa of the Indian Super League as their marquee player. Head Coach Zico of the franchise side had his wish granted when he had Lúcio return for another season.
Aaron Hughes (Kerala Blasters)
Aaron William Hughes is a Northern Irish professional footballer who has joined the Kerala Blasters this season for the Indian Super League and the Northern Ireland national team as a defender. Hughes plays mainly at centre back, but can also be used at right back or left back, as well as anywhere in midfield. He is renowned for his disciplined defending, having made 455 Premier League appearances without getting sent off, which is the second-most in the history of the league, behind only Ryan Giggs.
He began his career with Newcastle United, making his debut in 1997 and playing 279 games for the club across all competitions. He remained with the club until 2005, when he was transferred to Aston Villa for £1 million, and two years later he was signed by his former international manager Lawrie Sanchez to play for Fulham. He spent six-and-a-half seasons at Fulham, reaching the UEFA Europa League final in 2010. After leaving the club in January 2014, he had brief spells in the Championship with Queens Park Rangers and Brighton & Hove Albion, and abroad with Melbourne City FC and Kerala Blasters FC.
Hughes made his full international debut aged 18 in 1998 and has earned 103 caps for Northern Ireland, the second most in the nation's history, behind goalkeeper Pat Jennings. He captained the national team from 2003 up to international retirement in 2011, but returned to the team the following year and was included in their squad for UEFA Euro 2016.
On 28 July 2016, it was announced that Hughes would join the Kerala Blasters of the Indian Super League as their marquee player for the 2016 season.
Diego Forlán (Mumbai City FC)
Diego Forlán Corazzo, a Uruguayan footballer who plays as a forward joined Indian Super League club Mumbai City FC for the forthcoming season. He is a two-time winner of both the Pichichi Trophy and the European Golden Shoe, and also received the Golden Ball as the best player at the 2010 World Cup. He is regarded as one of the greatest Uruguayan players of all time.
Forlán joined Argentine club Independiente after rising through their youth team, and after a successful four-year spell, he signed for Manchester United of England. His form for United was not as successful as at Independiente, although he won the Premier League in 2002“03 and the FA Cup in 2003“04. In the summer of 2004, he moved on to Spanish side Villarreal. In his first season in Spanish football with Villarreal, Forlán scored 25 league goals and won the Pichichi Trophy. After two more successful seasons with Villarreal, Forlán joined Atlético Madrid, where he once again became the league's top scorer, and became the first player to win the Pichichi Trophy twice since Ronaldo achieved this feat in the 2003“04 season. Forlán scored in Atlético's 2010 Europa League final victory against Fulham. In 2011, he joined Inter Milan of Italy before moving to Internacional in 2012.
Forlán also had a successful international career, scoring 36 times for his country since his 2002 debut, including one at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He was the joint top scorer by scoring five times as Uruguay came fourth at the 2010 World Cup, being recognised with the Golden Ball award for the best player at the tournament.
On 12 July 2011, at the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, Forlán earned his 79th international cap, against Mexico, breaking the record held by former goalkeeper Rodolfo RodrÃguez since 1986. On 20 June 2013, in a match against Nigeria at the 2013 Confederations Cup, he became the first Uruguayan to win 100 caps. With 36 goals, Forlán was Uruguay's all-time leading top scorer from 2011 until Luis Suárez overtook him two years later. He retired from international football on 11 March 2015.
Didier Zokora (North East United FC)
Déguy Alain Didier Zokora, commonly known as Didier Zokora, is an Ivorian professional footballer who signed up in July 2015 for Indian Super League side FC Pune City. This season he returns for the prestigious tournament with North East United FC as their marquee player. The defensive midfielder was on his country's national team for almost 15 years since 2000 and has become the team's most capped player.
Eiður Guðjohnsen (FC Pune City)
Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen, is an Icelandic professional footballer who has joined Indian club FC Pune City for the forthcoming ISL season The Iceland national football team forward has previously played for Premier League club Chelsea and FC Barcelona of Spain, and has had two spells at Bolton Wanderers fourteen years apart. He was the captain of the Iceland national team until manager Ólafur Jóhannesson took over the team. Throughout his professional career, Eiður Smári has scored over 150 goals in all competitions with his clubs and the national team.
He is the son of Arnór Guðjohnsen, a former professional footballer. He made his full international debut for Iceland as a substitute for his father in 1996, and is the nation's top scorer of all time with 26 international goals in 88 caps.
