Ten recently retired stars we would have liked to see in ISL

The Indian Super League’s big attraction will be the eight marquee foreigners with names like Robert Pires, Freddie Ljungberg, David Trezeguet, Joan Capdevila, Luis Garcia and David James already confirmed. But football fans in India would surely have liked to watch even more stars. Sportskeeda lists ten recently retired big names that could have featured in the inaugural season of the ISL.The list is not in any particular order

#1 Michael Owen

The 2001 Ballon d’Or winner was reportedly in talks to be one of the marquee foreigners of the ISL but it only turned out to be a rumour. Owen retired in the summer of 2013 when he was playing for Stoke City and currently works as a pundit. The former England striker has a huge fan following in India mainly for his stints with Liverpool and Manchester United and thus would have been a great ambassador for the new league.

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#2 Raul

The former Spain star became a household name among football fans in India largely for his goal-scoring exploits for Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League, which he won three times. Even after leaving Real in 2010, the legendary forward had prolific stints with Schalke in Germany and Al Sadd in Qatar. He retired this summer after a two-year spell in the Middle East but Indians would have loved to see him in action in the ISL.

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#3 Carles Puyol

The Barcelona legend won 21 major titles with the Catalans including three Champions League crowns and also won the 2008 European Championship and 2010 FIFA World Cup with Spain. In the eyes of many Indians there hasn’t been a better centre-back than Puyol in the 21st century. He hung up his boots this summer citing two major operations but would surely have been fit enough to play in the first season of the ISL and be a role model for Indian players.

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#4 Robbie Fowler

This Liverpool legend was certainly close to playing in the ISL as he had talks with the Goa franchise to be their player-manager. Unfortunately that didn’t work out as organisers IMG-Reliance didn’t approve him as manager because of his lack of coaching experience. But the former striker’s popularity in India was evident when he got widely praised for his punditry during the FIFA World Cup coverage and thus would have been a big hit in the ISL.

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#5 Javier Zanetti

It is no secret that there are plenty of Argentina fans in India and Zanetti is one of the most respected players both for his consistency and conduct. Zanetti is best known for his 19-year stint at Inter Milan, which ended in May 2014 as he announced his retirement. The Italian club also retired their former captain’s number ‘4’ jersey and clearly the versatile Argentinian could have been a great asset for the ISL both on and off the pitch.

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#6 Paul Scholes

The Manchester United legend needs no introduction as for almost two decades he was one of the best players of the world’s most popular domestic league. Scholes originally retired in 2011 but came out of it in January 2012. He helped the club regain the EPL title in 2013 before retiring again. Football fans in India, especially the followers of Man United, would have loved an encore and the Indian players would have also got to learn a lot from the former England midfielder.

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#7 Alessandro Nesta

The Italian would still make the all-time best eleven of most Indians as for the best part of the 21st century he was one of the best centre-backs that we used to witness on television. A two-time Champions League winner with AC Milan and World Cup winner with Italy, Nesta only retired in 2013 after a spell with Canada’s Montreal Impact in the MLS and thus would have still had the fitness to feature in ISL’s first season.

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#8 Deco

The Portuguese playmaker became a household name in India after inspiring FC Porto to UEFA Champions League success in 2004. After that Deco was one of the stars to watch out for at Euro 2004 and he became even popular during his stints with Barcelona and Chelsea. He announced his retirement in August 2013 after a hamstring injury but looked quite sharp in his testimonial match last month and thus would have been a very good option for the ISL.

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#9 Louis Saha

The French striker drew attention even during his time with Fulham in the EPL because of his Indian surname and became even more popular after joining Manchester United in 2004. He won two league titles with United and went on to play for Everton and Tottenham as well before retiring in 2013. He was rumoured to be in talks with the ISL and still looks quite fit as he scored a hattrick in former Tottenham teammate Ledley King’s testimonial back in May.

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#10 David Beckham

We saved the best for the last. There hasn’t been a better ambassador of the beautiful game than the former England captain. Beckham, who only retired in 2013, has contributed enormously to raise the profile of the sport in USA during his time with Los Angeles Galaxy and could have been the perfect ambassador for the ISL also. Due to his close links with IMG, Beckham was rumoured to be involved with India’s new league in some capacity. Although that hasn’t happened yet, every football fan in India would hope that the former Man United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and PSG star gets attached in some way to promote the league and further popularise the sport in the country.

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