On October 29, 2017, Spanish football club Girona FC achieved what has to be the most memorable result in its 88-year history. The team, which was playing its first-ever season in the Spanish First Division, the La Liga, beat Real Madrid 2-1.
To put things in perspective, when the match took place, Real had 33 league titles, 31 domestic cups, including 19 Copa del Rey (the top cup competition), and 18 European titles, including 12 Champions League victories. Real went on to add a 13th Champions League title at the end of the season. And Girona went on to prove that the win was no fluke by finishing in the top 10 in the 20-team league.
Fast forward nine months from that famous victory and nine of the Girona players who started that match will be in India playing in the three-way Toyota Yaris LaLiga World tournament. The only two missing from that game are Uruguayan striker Cristhian Stuani and Spanish defender Pablo Maffeo.
Stuani is resting following his participation in the World Cup and Maffeo is no longer with Girona. The Girona squad is indicative of the strength of the opponents that await ISL club Kerala Blasters in India’s first-ever international pre-season tournament.
The third team in the tournament, Melbourne City FC, are also coming on the back of their best-ever season in the Australian top division, the A-League. They have also named a strong squad and will play the first match of the three-game tournament against hosts Kerala Blasters on Tuesday night.
The only major absentee for Melbourne City will be their World Cup star, Australia’s Daniel Arzani, who has been rested. Their coach, former Manchester United Reserves manager, Warren Joyce, said that he will use the matches to try out his entire squad, which also includes a few youngsters. At the pre-match news conference, Joyce also complimented the training facilities at Kochi, terming them as being "of international standards".
The hosts will be without star striker C.K. Vineeth, who is out with a jaw injury. Coach David James has confirmed that India star Dheeraj Singh will start the first match against Melbourne. The 18-year-old goalkeeper impressed between the sticks for India in last year’s U-17 World Cup and had a short stint in Europe where he had a trial in Scotland and trained with English Premier League team Bournemouth FC.
Fan favourite Iain Hume, who holds the ISL records for most appearances (59) and goals (28), will not be part of the squad this time. Talking about Hume's departure, Blasters captain Sandesh Jhingan told THE WEEK, "That is football. That is how it is: Players come and go, coaches come and go. The club stays. The fans stay. He was like a brother to me, Humie. But you have to get used to it. We would have loved to have him here. But, that is football."
Jhingan said that the Blasters are going to go all out for that elusive ISL trophy this season. "We start our pre-season now," said the India international.
"It has been good so far. The way things are shaping up, I think this year, we will surely try to win it."
Jhingan added that pre-seasons are always important and said he has had many tough ones. "But I like it," said Jhingan. "It should be lot of sweat and tears and blood. Pre-season is what makes you strong. Of course, things have changed a lot, from my time at Sikkim United. Now, I am preparing for an international pre-season tournament. It shows how much Indian football has improved.”
"And Kerala Blasters are taking this step, which I don't think anyone else would have thought of—getting Melbourne City FC and Girona FC to India to play pre-season friendlies. You normally hear about European teams doing this. But in India, to bring all this! I am really happy that I am part of the team that has taken this step. So credit to the team, CEO Varun, the owners and the sponsors Toyota as well. And I am sure it is going to help Indian football grow," Jhingan added.
As the ISL's most mercurial and best-supported team gears up to test itself against quality international opposition, the country will be watching. What the ambitious league has truly achieved in the Indian football scene will become evident as the Blasters take to the field on Tuesday night.
But irrespective of the results, there are only two things that matter. The Blasters should test their superior opponents and, their supporters, the Yellow Army, should turn up in numbers to cheer them on. If these two things happen, it will definitely be a win for the ISL and Indian football.