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The reigning ISL champions ATK have signed Glan Martins from the I-League club Churchill Brothers in the summer transfer window on a two-year deal. The Sanjiv Goenka-owned side will merge with Kolkata's traditional giants Mohun Bagan, and the new entity will come into force from the next season.
At the age of 17, SESA Football Academy sent Glan for a four-day stint at the USL PRO (United Soccer Leagues Professional) Combine in Florida. He graduated in 2014 and signed for Sporting Clube de Goa's senior team and made 13 appearances for them over two seasons in I-League.
Although he received interests from other ISL and I-League clubs, he was tied down by their long-term contract and couldn't make a move. The 25-year-old signed for Churchill Brothers in this season of I-League and made 14 appearances for them, primarily as a defensive midfielder.
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Glan's strength is helping the team build from the back. While ATK under present head coach Antonio Lopez Habas is known for their counter-attacking instinct, having a midfielder in their ranks who can move the ball forward with ease, especially when the opposition sits back deeply, can be useful.
After penning the deal with the Kolkata-based club, Glan will be re-united with some of his team-mates in Sporting Clube de Goa, like Arindam Bhattacharja and Subhasish Bose. The latter is another new signing for the club, having jumped the ship from ISL club Mumbai City FC.
ATK-Mohun Bagan will continue playing under the tutelage of Habas for another season after the Spaniard guided the team to their third ISL trophy. David Williams, Javi Hernandez, John Johnson, and Carl McHugh are the foreigners who are tied to a long-term contract and should turn up for them in the next season.
Among the Indian players, Pronay Halder has signed an extension with the club, and Manvir Singh will join the squad after the club paid a hefty transfer fee to FC Goa. ATK is known to be heavy spenders in the transfer market. After merging with Mohun Bagan and winning the ISL, one should not expect them to slow down.
