The foreign quota in ISL is one of the key aspects of a team’s success here, as they occupy the most crucial roles and are usually the main output providers for each team. As we know in ISL, every club can register 6 foreigners for the season, and the quality and balance in the foreign squads can sometimes set teams apart. Well, that was enough exposition, I guess. Let’s talk about the reason you’re here for: to get some insights on the foreign Squad of Kerala Blasters for the 25/26 season, and let’s dive right into it.
First, let’s just name out who the six tuskers are before going deep into the discussion:
| Name | Main Position | Alternate Position | Nationality | Contract till |
| Adrián Luna (33) | CAM | LW/RW/SS | Uruguay | 2027 |
| Noah Sadaoui (32) | LW | RW/CF | Morocco | 2026 |
| Dušan Lagator (31) | CDM | CB | Montenegro | 2026 |
| Koldo Obieta (32) | CF | SS/LW/RW | Spain | 2026 |
| Tiago Alves (29) | LW | CF/RW/SS | Portugal | 2026 |
| Juan Rodríguez (30) | CB | RB/CDM | Spain | 2026 |
Now, one of the first things you might notice here are the number of wingers and the contracts. A Lion’s share of the club’s foreign squad are either wingers or winger-adjacent and are one-year deals without any publicly known clauses, raising concerns on squad balance and retainment prospects among fans. Player contracts are not our turf, and so from here we’ll talk about the squad balance perspective.
A ‘Stack Overflow’ of Wingers
Foreign Wingers in ISL are nothing new, from Robert Pires to Dejan Dražić – the league has seen quite a stream of talented wingers each of whom brought their own unique flair to the league, but as the years went by the reduction of foreigners both in squad and on field, and the rise of domestic talents in Wing positions has led to a decline in the number of foreign wingers coming to ISL. Foreign Wingers now are still impactful but not very economical as they take up a crucial spot among the available six, leading to possible squad imbalances, especially in teams that lack balance in the domestic pool as well.
Coming to the Blasters themselves, they had to sacrifice their French Centre-Back Alexandre Coeff mid-season last year to sign Dušan Lagator due to the club struggling without a solid Defensive Midfielder to fill in the boots of Jeakson Singh, who they sold in the previous Summer Transfer Window. This move sparked debates among fans about an imbalance in the foreign squad and on a foreign winger taking the spot of a foreign midfielder, as the latter was considered to be more important for a balanced squad.
Fast forward to now, and there is a plethora of wingers at Kerala Blasters FC (someone really might’ve opened the Pandora’s box here lads), with each being considered to be of Starting 11 Quality. While that might sound like a good headache to have, it also has its side effects, with the primary one being a lack of players in other roles.
The squad limit regulations in both ISL and other cup competitions limit how many players a team can have, which leads to most teams opting to limit their player count in each position to avoid their count from going off the charts while also trying to have a balanced squad for better all-around success in the league phases. Back to Kerala Blasters, here we see… wait, you know what, I’ll first try to do “Show, don’t tell” for you:
The Count is 7, 7 Wingers, so for better understanding, I’ll say it with Simple Math: this picture shows 1/4 th of KBFC’s current squad, and to top it off, 6 out of 7 of these wingers primarily played as a Left-Winger in their respective previous season(s). Now this might feel kinda alarming, partly because it kinda is, but there’s a catch. The catch here is also the silver lining here – Versatility, out of the 6 LWs I mentioned – 2 of them can play anywhere in attack, and another 2 of them can play in both wings, if needed. The first set of two wingers who can play anywhere in attack are, you guessed it, Noah Sadaoui and Tiago Alves. Both players can play in both wings and slot in as a CF if needed, highlighting their versatility.
Noah Sadaoui:
Noah needs no introductions. The Moroccan Eagle was the Blasters’ 2nd Highest Goal scorer and Assist provider in the Indian Super League last season, just behind Jesús Jiménez and Adrián Luna, respectively. Noah Sadaoui offers ISL Experience along with an almost consistent output of 10+ G/A every season, making him a valuable asset to any team in the ISL. Noah’s pace and one-on-one dribbling skills makes him a threatening presence during long ball/counter attacking gameplays, something which has led to him being one of the favorites to make it into Catala’s lineup.
Tiago Alves:
The Blasters’ latest attacking addition, coming as a free agent with a wealth of Asian Experience, is someone who is expected to be the club’s main man for the upcoming season. The Portuguese forward is someone who can be described as a fine line between Noah and Luna, with his pace, offensive roles and work rate. His ability to play as CF/SS or even in No. 10 roles when needed provides some much-needed balance for the team, considering there was no alternative for Luna in the initial squads in the previous seasons.
His versatility, along with his commendable defensive record for a forward, makes him the suited pick to either start under David Catala or come off as a super sub. Tiago is similar to a winger like Dražić in his natural position, and he is expected to start in his natural position LW or as a RW or a SS in the Super Cup alongside Noah or Koldo.
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The Blasters’ foreign CF options are Koldo Obieta, Tiago Alves and Noah Sadaoui, and you’ll notice that only one of them is a pure CF, i.e, Koldo. Obieta – KBFC’s latest No. 9 is a physical striker, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Kwame Peprah but with a few exceptions. Some of the issues which plagued Peprah are among Obieta’s Strengths, and I’ll tell you which and how:
1. Experience: Starting off the list with this, as this is the point most would be expecting to see here, Peprah’s lack of experience had led to him making some faulty decisions on the pitch, which ended up costing the team badly on a few occasions. Obieta, however, comes with a wealth of experience and is expected to reduce mistakes in attacking scenarios.
2. Composure: Peprah, maybe due to the energy of his young age or his inexperience, was not a really composed striker. Powerful first-time shot attempts from wherever and whenever affected his scoring rate, but also led to some incredible goals at times. Unfortunately, his poor attempts outweighed the good ones during his two-year tenure at the club, as he left the club at the end of his contract. Obieta, however, is the antonym of Peprah because of his high levels of Composure, something which could also become a weakness if not done right.
3. Combinational Play: This is not necessarily a weakness of Peprah, but Koldo, being a ‘Spanish’ striker, is more used to the Spanish style of combinational play, Tiki Taka and is known to play combinations whenever he gets a chance.
( On a Side Note: Despite these, Peprah’s youthfulness and energy will surely be missed on the pitch. Go Well, Peprah. )
Now back to where we began, except Koldo, there is no pure Center-Forwards, a scenario different from previous seasons. But as we mentioned in the previous section, Tiago and Noah can play as CFs if needed, and among the two, Tiago is expected to take the Center Stage but in a 2-Striker system, something which concerns a section of fans as all 3 CF options of KBFC this season have more or less been more effective in a 2-ST system compared to a Single-Striker one.
But it’s also something which excites a section of fans as the 2-ST system is a tried and tested system in the ISL and was a joy to watch during Ivan era and is still one of the more effective formations in the league. But how will Catala manage the CF Exception under his own rules, is something yet to be seen.
A ‘Stack Underflow’ of DMs
A Midfielder, especially A Defensive Midfielder, is one of the spots where almost every other ISL club employs a foreigner due to how crucial the role is. The DM role in ISL has been usually dominated by Moroccans and Spaniards, and the Blasters have brought a Montenegrin to the mix – Enter Dušan Lagator, the Defensive Midfielder/Center-Back the club brought, no, bought in the January Transfer Window last season.
The Montenegrin midfielder has featured in 9 games for the club but has only 2 appearances in the DM role for which the club supposedly signed him. His only 2 games as a DM came in the disastrous 2024-’25 season’s Super Cup run, but under the current Head Coach, David Catala. The club lacking proper, reliable DMs after the sale of Jeakson Singh puts more pressure from both the squad and fans’ perspective on Lagator to perform, and this season might …, no, is the break-it or make-it season for Dušan.
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The Blasters have 2 Foreign CB options, one being aforementioned Dušan and the other being the Blasters’ latest signing, Juan Rodríguez Martínez. Juan Rodríguez Martínez, the 31-year-old Spaniard, is expected to be the new leader at the back for the men in yellow and has quite a task at hand.
Organizing the yellow wall is a task that all the successors of Marko Lešković have more or less failed at, and Juan, with his experience, is expected to fill in the boots of Marko Lešković rather than Miloš Drinčić. Considering the young defensive line of the Blasters, how well Juan can organize the defense might just end up being the deciding factor of the upcoming season, as we’ve all seen what the lack of a leader figure in the defense did to the Blasters’ last season.
Dušan Lagator’s good performance as a CB in recent years also adds a sense of security to the Blasters’ defense line this season. So, as you can see, this is the Foreign Squad of KBFC for the 2025-’26 season. Now let’s see how they all could fit in a singular lineup(s), considering the upcoming Super Cup Allows All 6 Foreigners to be on the pitch at any given time.
Possible Lineups:
Lineup 1: (4-4-2) Nora Fernandes, Naocha Singh, Bikash Yumnam, Juan Rodriguez, Ruivah Hormipam, Tiago Alves, Adrian Luna, Dusan Lagator, Korou Singh, Noah Sadaoui, Koldo Obieto
Lineup 2: (4-2-3-1) Nora Fernandes, Naocha Singh, Bikash Yumnam, Juan Rodriguez, Amey Ranawade, Vibin Mohanan, Dusan Lagator, Noah Sadaoui, Adrian Luna, Tiago Alves, Koldo Obieto
Final Thoughts:
So, as we can see here, the foreign recruitment for this season more or less follows the same 4 attackers – 2 defenders pattern implemented by Karolis himself from the 2021-’22 season, and fans will be hoping that this year’s recruitment will be an on-field success like the one from 2021-’22. There are points of concern here and there, but how it plays out in the end will form the crux of the 2025-26 Kerala Blasters season.
Final Ratings:
Attack: 8/10 (Good -> Great)
The presence of proven player(s) like Noah Sadaoui gives the Blasters a minimum guarantee in the attacking department, enhanced by Adrián Luna and the new signings Koldo and Tiago, especially the latter is expected to be a major hit in yellow, considering his experience in some of Asia’s finest leagues. This attacking department is expected to be the most fascinating aspect of the Blasters’ upcoming season, and once it starts delivering, it might just be cloud nine once again for the Yellow Army.
The Title of this article ‘Trial of Trios’ is based on the triangular play that most of these players are comfortable with and if Catala follows that route, we might see more beautiful goals like the club’s 200th one, a beautiful team move finished by none other than El Capitán, Adrián Luna in the game against Jamshedpur at home.
Midfield: 7/10 (Above Average)
On the front end, El Capitán, Adrián Luna will be looking to get back on the scoring charts after a null 2024-25 season and would be expected to be the club’s top assister in the league once again, a spot held by him since his first season in yellow (yes, he was the club’s top assister in ISL even in the 2023-24 where he only appeared in 10 games for the club). On the back end, Dušan Lagator is going to have a make-it or break-it season, which could define his time in Kochi.
Defense: 7.5/10 (Above Average -> Good)
Juan and Dušan. KBFC’s defensive department boasts a unique mixture of young Indians and experienced foreigners, with Juan and Dušan being two different types of Center-Backs on their own, providing more perceivable depth in the Blasters’ defense.
Juan is expected to be the primary CB, and Dušan, well, depends on which role he performs the best under Catala. The backline will also have a say in offense in the next season, as Catala’s system uses center-backs as one of the starting points of attack in his build-up plays.
So these are my thoughts, and I’ll see you around sometime soon with another article, Ciao.
Note: *Final Ratings: These are just my thoughts based on how the departments look on paper and a not a definitive outlook on how they would perform. There was no reason for this disclaimer, but just to play it safe :-).
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