KOLKATA: East Bengal FC on Thursday announced the signing of French playmaker Madih Talal on a two-year contract.
“Talal has been one of the top foreigners to make an impact in their debut ISL season… After a few conversations, Talal prioritized East Bengal over other ISL clubs, knowing how important he is going to be for our new project,” East Bengal coach Carles Cuadrat said.
The arrival of Talal — who played for Punjab FC in the last season and was the top assist-provider in ISL-10 — is expected to provide more impetus to East Bengal’s attack as the team has already roped in ISL’s Golden Boot winner Dimitrios Diamantakos and Durand Cup’s top-scorer David Lalhlansanga, apart from extending Brazilian forward Cleiton Silva’s stay for another season.
“East Bengal’s contribution to Indian football is immense and I am honored to commit my future to this legendary club. I am very excited to meet my new teammates and the incredible fans who make this club special,” Talal said in an East Bengal FC statement.
Club's ExCo picks Cleiton as captain:
In another development, East Bengal club has picked Cleiton as captain of the senior side for the 2024-2025 season. Naorem Mahesh Singh will be his deputy.
The club’s new executive committee took the decisions in this respect in its first meeting on Thursday.
In a related move, Aditya Patra will lead the team’s reserve side, which will take part in the CFL Premier Division, with Tanmoy Das being his deputy.
The club traditionally hands over the captain’s armband to a senior player at the start of the season.
