ISL 2023-24: Indians that starred in season-10

Indian players played the most important role in developing the solid core of any team in the Indian Super League (ISL). The tenth edition of ISL was a prime example of such contributions, as the ISL finalists Mumbai City FC and Mohun Bagan used their Indian core very well and produced good results throughout the season.

However, Bengaluru FC whose top Indian players like Suresh Wangjam, Sivashakti Narayan, Roshan Singh and Sunil Chhetri could not make the same impact as they did in their previous seasons, hence BFC ended in the 10th position.

Today, The Bridge highlighted the performance of such Indian players who made a huge impact on their teams this season.

Lallianzuala Chhangte - Mumbai City FC

Chhangte has been proving himself as India's one of the most dangerous and consistent attacking players in the last few seasons. This season, too, he was no less effective as he posed a great threat from the wings using his speed to dodge the defenders.

He added one more facet to his game this season. He also tried to enter the penalty box more using his quick cut-ins and supported his forwards using his holding play in the box. He made a valuable 16-goal contributions this season (10 goals and 6 Assists).

He is now also the first Indian player to score goals in double digits for more than one season. Chhangte has also helped the team with his defensive play by doubling up with the wing backs whenever there is a threat.

Brandon Fernandes - FC Goa

India's one of the most aggressive midfielders is returning to his best form after a tough couple of seasons, because of a bad injury. This season, he scored some out-of-the-box screamers and made a magnificent impact in FC Goa's terrific campaign.

Brandon has created the most number of chances (60) in the league this season in the 20 matches he played, with an average of three chances per match. He also contributed to the team on seven occasions, scoring three goals and four assists. 

He is now the first Indian to complete 25 assists in ISL history and currently sitting in second position in the overall assists tally behind Hugo Boumous (33). He has a strong presence in the Goan midfield because of his holding play, he attracted the most number of fouls (36) this season for them. 

Manvir Singh - Mohun Bagan SG

Manvir Singh, the star India international, had his best season in the ISL in 2023-24 as he produced 11 goal contributions (4 goals and 7 assists ) for the ISL champions, Mohun Bagan SG.

He has provided the most number of assists (7) this season in comparison to any other Indian player. He took the honours of creating attack for the Mariners alongside Dimitrios Petratos as the starman Hugo Boumous left the club mid-season.

Manvir produced his first-ever double-digit contributions in ISL this season, as he got more of a central role than the wing play. His problems from the previous years were his shots on target conversion, which he bettered this season by more than 35 per cent. 

Lalengmawia Ralte - Mumbai City FC

Lalengmawia Ralte, also known as Apuia, played a magnificent role in Mumbai City FC's midfield this season. Apuia wasn't that impressive in the past few seasons as he got overshadowed by the presence of Ahmed Jahouh. But this season the latter joined Odisha FC, and that gave Apuia a chance to show his clinical footwork.

The 23-year-old defensive midfielder has held the team pretty well and won 43 fouls using his ball-handling skills which is the most number of fouls earned by an Indian player this season. He has also supported his defence on numerous occasions with his timely tackles (27).

He was also crucial to Mumbai's transitional play from the centre-backs to the forwards by taking a central role in a three-man defence on several occasions. He also scored a goal this season against Kerala Blasters which proved to be a winner as he converted a draw into a win at their first home match of the season.

Subhasish Bose - Mohun Bagan

Subhasish had one more great season with the ISL champions as he played a big role in the left-back position for the Mariners. He also helped their defence and stopped the speedy wingers before providing some fiery crosses. 

He has made the most number of successful passes (935) than any other Indian player in the season and also had a pretty good record of successful tackles (37). He again proved to be a dangerous player while handling the high balls.

He scored only one goal this season but helped the forwards in producing quick counterattacks with his accurate long balls and through passes.