After Michael Chopra, top Senegalese defender joins Kerala Blasters ahead of ISL 2016

Indian Super League football club Kerala Blasters is steadily increasing their firepower ahead of the upcoming season. After roping in big names like Aaron Hughes, Graham Stack and Michael Chopra, the Sachin Tendulkar co-owned club announced the signing of towering Senegalese defender Elhadji Ousseynou Ndoye (Ouzin Ndoye) on Tuesday.

With the inclusion of the 24-year-old, the Kochi-based team now has six foreign players at its disposal. It had earlier retained the services of Josu and Antonio German.

The Senegalese defender, who plies his trade as a centreback, may not have featured for the national team yet but his strength is highly revered. Ndoye has mostly played for Belgian clubs and has a total of 46 appearances in their second division.

Kerala Blasters, the finalists of the first ISL in 2014, had a forgettable outing last season when they finished at the bottom of the points table. The franchisee has roped in Manchester United veteran winger Steve Coppell as their head coach, while Hughes, a Europa League finalist with Fulham, has been named the marquee player.

Tendulkar's side has also brought back former Newcastle United and Sunderland forward Chopra ahead of ISL 2016. The Indian-origin English striker was just a mere shadow of his form during the first season of the ISL with the Blasters. However, with Chopra expressing determination to prove his fitness and better his performances this time, the former Premier League forward would be expected to perform better than what he did in 2014.