Well-rounded squad

The Italian influence offers FC Pune City a tactical advantage over other ISL teams. The team has drawn heavily from Italy, including manager Franco Colomba and his deputy Giovanni Mei. The franchise has also signed up Emmanuele Belardi (goalkeeper), Bruno Cirillo, Danielle Magliocchetti (defenders) and Davide Colomba (midfielder).

Marquee signing Frenchman David Trezeguet, too, is armed with considerable Serie A experience, playing successfully for Juventus for many seasons.

The Indian international and other domestic players, like Dharmaraj Ravanan, Deepak Devrani, Lenny Rodrigues, Manish Maithani and Joaquim Abranches, offer the team a youthful look, and the group will do well to pick up a trick or two from the foreign pros.

Pune City pulled off a masterstroke by convincing Greece’s 2014 World Cup skipper Konstaninos Katsouranis to join the bandwagon. The Greek can be a livewire, functioning as the link between defence and offence, while France World Cupper Trezeguet can still score aplenty, taking the lead upfront.

The squad comes into the ISL after a short orientation programme in Italy, as the franchise made full use of its collaboration with Serie A club Fiorentina.

Nandakumar Marar