ISL 2016: 5 players to watch out for in the Atletico de Kolkata-Chennaiyin FC clash

The third season of the Indian Super League is finally upon us, and on matchday 2, we have the former champions taking on the defending champions at the Rabindra Sarobar Stadium, Kolkata.

Both teams have undergone changes with regards to their squads, but the basic objective remains the same: to start off the campaign with a win. While Atletico de Kolkata have released most of their Indian players, Chennaiyin have done the opposite and let go of their foreign recruits. As such, with new faces and new tactics in place, one wonders how the teams will go about executing their plans.

From ATK’s perspective, the added incentive will be that they would love to avenge the defeat the men from Chennai handed to them in the playoffs in ISL 2, which led them to crash out from the tournament. All in all, it promises to be one heck of an exciting match and here are five players you should watch out for during the game:

#1 Jeje Lalpekhlua

Jeje celebrates after scoring a goal 

At 25 years of age, Jeje is easily one of the most exciting Indian prospects right now, and he has been scoring goals at will for both his club and national side.  He won the FPAI Indian Player of the Year award last year, and Chennaiyin FC coach Marco Materazzi will be well aware of the impact the Indian can have when on the pitch.

Infact, the Italian has already declared that the Mohun Bagan forward will be a key cog in his team, and many expect him to fill the gaping hole created by the departure of their talismanic frontman Stiven Mendoza. His stats in the Indian Super League support this view, he scored 4 goals and ended up as the highest scoring Indian in the first season, while in the second one he was awarded the Emerging Playing of the Year award after scoring 6 goals and setting 3 more en route to winning the title.