ISL 2020-21: Who are Odisha FC's foreign players?

ISL 2020: From Steven Taylor to Marcelinho, here are all of Odisha FC's foreign players for the Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21) season.

Published : Nov 23, 2020 10:02 IST

Former Newcastle defender Steven Taylor will captain Odisha FC this Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21) season.
Former Newcastle defender Steven Taylor will captain Odisha FC this Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21) season.
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Former Newcastle defender Steven Taylor will captain Odisha FC this Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21) season.

Odisha FC has made some strong reinforcements in key positions ahead of the seventh season of the Indian Super League (ISL 2020-21).

New head coach Stuart Baxter's side boasts a formidable foreign contingent that features the likes of former Newcastle defender Steven Taylor and ISL hero Marcelo Pereira, commonly known as Marcelinho.

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Here are all of Odisha FC's foreign players:

Steven Taylor

Taylor is Odisha's biggest signing of the season and brings a world of wealth, having played 13 seasons for Newcastle United. The 34-year-old, who will captain the side this season, has played against the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Didier Drogba in the Premier League and is a massive addition in defence.

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Before joining Odisha FC, Taylor was the captain of New Zealand’s Wellington Phoenix FC which competes in the A-League.
 

He captained Wellington Phoenix to a third-place finish in the A-League in his last assignment. He had shared the dressing room with ATK Mohun Bagan's strike duo of Roy Krishna and David Williams in the 2018-19 A-League season.

Marcelinho

The Spaniard is one of the most experienced attacking players in the league, having played four seasons so far.

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Marcelinho, who won the Golden Boot in his ISL debut with Delhi Dynamos in 2016, is one of the most consistent forwards in the league and averages over seven goals per season.

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Marcelinho has scored 31 goals and made 18 assists in 63 ISL matches so far.
 

He joins Odisha from Hyderabad FC, where he scored seven goals last season (one-third of the club's total tally). He is also a terrific playmaker and has the record for the most assists in the ISL - 18.

Cole Alexander

Alexander is Odisha's only foreign midfield signing of the season. Born in Cape Town, Alexander played youth football at Hellenic FC and Ajax Cape Town before making his senior professional debut for the latter.

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A high-energy midfielder, Alexander has also represented various other South African clubs such as Vasco Da Gama, Chippa United, Polokwane City and SuperSport United.

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Cole Alexander previously played under Odisha FC coach Stuart Baxter at the South African national team.
 

The 31-year-old South African national team member was one of the outstanding performers for Bidvest Wits in the South African Premier League last season.

He has also previously played under coach Baxter at the South African national team.

Jacob Tratt

Australia's Jacob Tratt will play a key role in bolstering the side's defence alongside Taylor. The 26-year-old is a versatile defender and can play as a right-back and a centre-back.

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Jacob Tratt has played in the A-League throughout his career.
 

After his youth career at Sydney FC, he has been consistently playing in the Australian A-League and has represented Sydney, Sydney United, Wellington Phoenix, Sutherland Sharks and Perth Glory.

Manuel Onwu

Spanish striker Onwu is the only foreigner retained by Odisha for this season. He had arrived on a loan from Bengaluru FC in the January transfer window and made an immediate impact as he scored seven goals and made two assists in the four games he played.

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Manuel Onwu played a key role in Odisha FC's sixth-placed finish last season.
 

The 32-year-old former Osasuna striker is a massive threat in the box and a strong addition to Odisha's attacking line-up.

Diego Mauricio

Mauricio completes Odisha's three-pronged foreign attackers contingent. The 29-year-old striker has the experience of playing at many top football leagues around the world, including Portugal, South Korea, China and Saudi Arabia.

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He made his senior club debut for Brazil’s Flamengo in 2010 where he linked up with football legend, Ronaldinho. He has played for other Brazilian teams like Sport Club do Recife, Bragantino and Centro Sportivo Alagoano.

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Deigo Mauricio had played alongside Brazilian legend Ronaldinho at Flamengo.
 

The Rio de Janeiro-born forward was part of Brazil’s U-20 squad and played in a team that boasted of stars like Phillipe Coutinho, Casemiro, Oscar, Felipe Anderson, Firmino and Neymar.

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