ISL 2019-20: Can Manu Onwu and Nili Perdomo catalyse their new teams at the business end?
Earlier this morning, it was announced that Odisha FC had signed striker Manuel Onwu from defending ISL champions Bengaluru FC, on loan, as a replacement for the injured Aridane Santana.
On face value, it is clear to see why Odisha might not have done the best deal here, and even be fearful for them. After all, they have replaced a striker who has scored nine goals and has two assists in 14 games this season, with someone who has a solitary assist in five games, and hasn't yet troubled the scoresheet.
So, what do Odisha have to gain from bringing Onwu into the squad to spearhead their push for a playoff spot in their first season of ISL football?
Can he fill the massive void that Aridane leaves behind? It's not just the goals that Onwu has to manage. Aridane was adept at bringing the others around him into play. He had a telepathic understanding with Xisco Hernandez, and both Jerry Mawihmingthanga and Nandhakumar Sekar were flourishing with Aridane knitting up all the play, with his power, strength and intelligence.
That sounds like a tough initiation into the Aridane life for Onwu. It doesn't help that he has got to hit the ground running, with Odisha just a point ahead of Mumbai City FC in the race for fourth. And, there's Chennaiyin FC to deal with as well, with the two-time champions' hot run of form meaning they are three points behind Odisha, and they have a game in hand too.
So how could Onwu help Odisha? Well, for one, his aerial ability could prove to be a nuisance to the opposition. His only assist this season came off a flicked header to Udanta Singh, against FC Goa at Fatorda.
As much as Odisha have been a side to pass it from the back, and build play, their ability to mix it up and go direct to Aridane was a huge string in the bow.
It is going to be a tough ask for Onwu, though, to replicate what Aridane did for Odisha. Take the shot count for example. In 5 games, where he played 339 minutes for Bengaluru, Onwu has 4 shots, which is around a shot every 85 minutes. Aridane, on the other hand, had 37 shots in 14 games, playing 1144 minutes. That is a rate of a shot every 31 minutes.
However, in recent history, Odisha have taken a player from Bengaluru and completely transformed. Xisco Hernandez had just a solitary goal last season in the Blues' run to the title, but he already has five goals and two assists for Odisha this season.
Josep Gombau will hope that Onwu's work-rate and aerial ability can match Aridane's ability, but the Spanish coach might have to change his team's way of playing.
Perhaps, if Xisco played alongside Onwu, instead of just behind him, that could be a good option for Odisha. Perhaps, Onwu could be used to bring the likes of Xisco, Jerry and Nandhakumar into play, instead of solely taking the burden of scoring goals upon himself.
Really, though, on face value, it feels like the Blues have got the better end of the deal, although Nili Perdomo's arrival to replace Onwu in their squad does come with its own set of challenges.
With only four matches left in the regular season, and Bengaluru desperate to finish top, Nili will have to hit the ground running, with no honeymoon period whatsoever. The Spaniard is likely to miss the game against Hyderabad FC on Thursday, so the three ISL games he will be available for, are away games against the Blues' southern rivals Chennaiyin FC and Kerala Blasters, before a potential final day shootout against ATK at the Kanteerava.
With Deshorn Brown already seemingly having settled in, with an impressive showing against Odisha FC, Bengaluru needed to add creativity to their ranks, especially with the uncertainty surrounding Raphael Augusto's availability after the Brazilian's knee injury.
Nili's versatility will help Bengaluru hugely, in terms of their quest to become a more rounded attacking side. Right now, Bengaluru are the set-piece kings of the ISL, and as much as Carles Cuadrat loves that tag, he knows his side will be only more dangerous if they can add goals from open play to their repertoire.
With Bengaluru also scheduled to play four AFC Cup games in February, they cannot afford to have passengers in their squad, and after Brown's arrival, it was clear that Onwu no longer had Cuadrat's trust.
It is unclear yet whether Nili has been registered in Bengaluru's AFC Cup squad, with only three non-Asian foreigners allowed in it, along with the AFC foreigner in Erik Paartalu.
At 25, Nili is the youngest foreigner in the Bengaluru squad now, and Cuadrat will be looking at him to take some of the goal-scoring burden off Sunil Chhetri, who has scored nine of Bengaluru's 18 ISL goals this season.
The former Barcelona B player had a decent goal-scoring record at his previous club, scoring 11 goals in 45 games for Platanias in Greece.
If he settles in seamlessly, then Bengaluru will know they have a chance of a repeat of last season - when they topped the league and took home the ISL trophy as well.