The craze of football as a game is gaining traction in India especially among the youth. The intensifying popularity of the prestigious Hero Indian Super League game is a testimony of the same. It’s a premier soccer championship resumed in 2014 that aims to offer sheer entertainment and the pleasure to watch quality soccer to millions of football lovers.
The league comprises ten football clubs loaded with energetic and skillful midfielders, attackers, and defenders. However, ATK FC and FC Goa both have earned a spot in the list of the top-notch Indian soccer squads by showcasing amazing performances consistently in all the seasons.
On one hand, the former, ATK Kolkata was crowned as the winner of the Hero Super Cup in 2014. The latter proved its potential by grabbing the same title this year. Aren’t you thrilled to dig more and get an idea of the exciting voyage of these two legendary clubs? We know you already are, so let’s read some of the most interesting facts about these clubs.
ATK FC: Are They Best in the Indian Soccer League Business?
Atlético de Kolkata was the name of this soccer club when founded in 2014. The Spanish touch to the name was a result of the existence of a Spanish La Liga club Atlético Madrid as one of the co-owners on the board. However, in 2017 the partnership dissolved and the name was changed to ATK Kolkata. While the colors in the logo are derived from the former association with the Spanish Partner, today it is co-owned by Sourav Ganguly, Harshvardhan Neotia, Sanjiv Goenka and Utsav Parekh.
How Has Been The Journey Of These Kolkata Footballer Gems Till Date?
Undoubtedly, this soccer club has performed its best in the Indian soccer league championships since its inception. They won the foundational season of the ISL challenge. They hold the record for lifting the title for the maximum number of times. So, let’s explore their thrilling voyage in detail season-wise:
1. The Champions Of The Inaugural Season (2014)
Antonio López Habas was the coach of ATK Kolkatain 2014. Along with him, the club signed the ex-Madrid footballer Borja Fernández and they were two of the first additions to the squad. The team played their first match on 12 October and destroyed Mumbai City FC with a 3-0 win.
The Ethiopian soccer star Fikru Teferra Lemessa penalty kick in the first match was celebrated among the football lovers. The amazing victory paved the way to exploring the success path for the club and they defeated Kerala Blasters in the ISL final capturing the trophy.
2. A Season With A Little Disappointment For The Kolkata Soccer Giant But Brought A Ray of Hope As Well (2015)
In 2015, Kolkata footballers stepped-in with a whole new level of energy that was simply awesome. The club also made a few of the record investments for adding a couple of soccer gems such as the Canadian Lain Hume a remarkable forward from Kerala Blasters.
Besides, Amrinder Singh from Pune Fc was another expensive purchase for ATK. In spite of building such a robust line-up, the club couldn’t lift the title in 2015. They made a couple of records such as Hume scored the maximum number of goals in a game during that particular season including two amazing hat tricks against Mumbai City FC.
3. Another Golden Feather In The Club’s Cap (2016)
This season was full of action and drama for ATK Kolkata fans as some of the matches were extremely electrifying. Especially, the finals against Kerala Blasters was another roller-coaster ride for the football enthusiasts as the club won the exciting match after a lot of struggle.
The last few minutes of the final battle were super thrilling as the game entered the penalty landscape. The seamless performance of the goalie Debjit Majumder was highly praised as he saved an attempt from the attacking side and helped his squad win the match.
4. Quite A Lot Changed In The Club’s Possession (2017-18)
The partnership dissolution leads to the restructuring of the entire squad and many new players were integrated from other teams. The Irish soccer sensation Robbie Keane proved to be one of the best investments for the club in that season. However, the squad couldn’t make it to the playoffs also and this season was a little disappointing for their fans.
5. Another ISL Score Table That Let The Club Come Back to Their Original Form (2018-19)
This season the club has the support of Sanjoy Sen who is the ex -Mohun Bagan head coach. He mentored the team extremely well and paid more atten tion to the local footballers who performed excellently. This allowed the club to earn the sixth position at the ISL standings.
The squad is playing the 2019-20 ISL season and currently leading the league table with ten points. Along with these stats, ATK FC also holds a couple of other records such as winning a match with the biggest gap of 5-0 against Hyderabad in this season.
The soccer brand witnessed the highest attendance in a game against Chennaiyin FC during the ISL season of 2015. Overall, the soccer club has gained huge respect from football fans across the world. Considering the popularity graph, there is no looking back for the squad in upcoming seasons as well!!
FC Goa: Why The Skillful Squad Has To Be Satisfied With The Runners-up Title In Most Of The Games?
Formed in 2014, FC Goa represents the only state in India that has declared soccer as its official game. The complete journey of the club can be divided into two segments. FC Goa is owned by Virat Kohli, Jaydev Mody and Akshay Tandon. The blue and orange in their logo symbolize the Goan coastline and sunrise.
I. Three Foundational Years For The Goan Squad (214-16)
The aggressive former Brazilian midfielder Zico coached the club for these three years. Under his guidance, the players performed well. The squad lost four of the first six games in the ISL season of 2014. They gained magical momentum after these defeats and won five matches in the remaining championship.
FC Goa performed extremely well in the 2015 ISL tournament and grabbed the title of runners-up. The successive season was quite disappointing for the club fans as the squad was undergoing an intense transition in terms of its ownership.
II. The Era Post Club’s Makeover (2017 – 2019)
Since 2017 the Spanish soccer player Sergio Lobera Rodriguez is leading the club as its coach. The footballer added a few Spanish stars to the squad which has enhanced the team’s performance in the last season of the ISL championship. The golden moment for the club arrived when they grabbed the title of the 2019 Hero Indian super league.
In spite of a ride full of ups and downs, there were a few soccer gems who played excellently in these seasons and proved their caliber. Some of them are Mandar Rao Dessai and Ferran Corominas who are the top-goal scorers for the club. Besides, Gregory Arnolin the French footballer holds the record for appearing in the maximum number of league matches.
How About Concluding The Journey Of These Two Soccer Brand By Exploring Their Respective Profiles On The Fantasy Football Landscape?
Fantasy football has gained immense popularity among Indian soccer lovers as well. The concept is extremely exciting as it lets people bid on their favorite soccer stars and build their virtual teams.
Based on the performances of the chosen players in the on-going league matches the roster of the participants keeps rolling and eventually, the one with the highest number of points is declared as the winner.
ATK Kolkata and FC Goa are two of the top-notch choices for those taking part in fantasy football India.Both the squads have gems who possess the potential to nail the rivals. Hence people love to invest in some of these soccer legends and build the fantasy teams that allow them to play the exciting sport from the comfort of their homes.
Well, comparing these two soccer clubs wouldn’t be fair as both of them have showcased quality soccer. Let the audience seek pleasure in watching some of the best footballers move to and fro in the grounds scoring amazing goals and defending some of the super crazy attempts.
At last, we conclude that because of such clubs the actionable sport has become even more exhilarating for the fans. ATK Kolkata and FC Goa have contributed substantially to raising the popularity of football in India. The testament to this is when thousands of fans attend these matches in person and watch them digitally. The initiation of soccer league battles can be considered as one of the benchmarks in Indian football history.
As soccer lovers, our best wishes are with the Indian football league system that’s focused on growing the sport’s esteem not only within the country but also at the global level.
