ISL news: Kerala Blasters sign former Norwich City forward Gary Hooper

ISL side Kerala Blasters have announced the signing of former Norwich City forward Gary Hooper. The English striker joins Kerala Blasters for the 2020-21 ISL season from Australian club Wellington Phoenix. Hooper scored eight goals in 21 appearances in the A-League last season and will now take charge of leading the Blasters in front of goal.

Gary Hooper comes in with vast experience, having played for Premier League side Norwich City in 32 games, scoring six goals. The Englishman also played four seasons with Sheffield Wednesday before making a move abroad to ply his trade in Australia. Hooper has also featured in the Champions League and Europa League during his stint with Scottish giants Celtic.

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Speaking after the singing of the former Norwich City man, Karolis Skinkys, sporting director of Kerala Blasters said: "Gary Hooper has a natural killer instinct on the field and can score some unbelievable goals. I’m positive that our fans will soon come to love Gary Hooper for his high-level goalscoring quality. I’m very happy to have a player of such calibre join the team and look forward to working with him for our upcoming season."

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Gary Hooper later spoke about his move and exclaimed that he is excited to join the team for pre-season training in Goa. “I am really looking forward to the next chapter in my career with Kerala Blasters. I hope my experience can help the team and I can score important goals to help us challenge for the ISL title. Can’t wait to meet my team-mates and start training for the new season.”

Gary Hooper is Kerala Blasters' fourth foreign signing for the 2020-21 season. The ISL giants have already signed Facundo Pereira, Vicente Gomez and retained Sergio Cidoncha ahead of the new season under new manager Kibu Vicuna. 

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11th team in the ISL: East Bengal joins after forging a partnership with Shree Cement

East Bengal FC will embark on its maiden Indian ISL campaign in the 2020-21 season after its inclusion in the ISL was confirmed last month. East Bengal made its way to the ISL following Shree Cement East Bengal Foundation's acquisition of a majority stake in the club and their successful bid to gain entry into the the league. 

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Image credits: Kerala Blasters Twitter