Foreign club interested in Abdul Sahal - Offers big transfer fee

“It should just be a matter of time until the AGL welcomes its first India International of the professional era,” reads a sports360.com report. There are two questions here: What is AGL and who is being referred to as the 'First India International'?

AGL is the UAE Pro League, known for sponsorship reasons as the Arabian Gulf League, the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates. And the India International referred to here is Sahal Abdul Samad.

The 22-year-old seems to have drawn interest from a UAE Pro League side following his exploit with Team India and Kerala Blasters FC in the Indian Super League. The club which showed interest in him is yet to be known, but UAE certainly would be an ideal destination for Sahal on many counts.

Firstly, he knows the country well, having spent his formative years at New Indian Model School in the oasis city of Al-Ain. Secondly, he would continue to hog the lime-light as the club would do its best to make Sahal a marketable commodity to draw the attention of the big Indian diaspora present in UAE. Most importantly, he would be a in tougher league, which would further aid his growth as a footballer.

“A growing domestic scene, allied with a substantial expatriate population, makes the move a no-brainer,” the sports360 report stated. …And he has got the talent to substantiate that, a testimony to which is National Team coach Igor Stimac’s faith on the boy. He has featured in nine out of ten games for India under the Croatian tactician.

This season too, he has been phenomenal for his club despite statistics not speaking in his favour. But what counts for the ISL Emerging Player of 2018-19 is his impact on the game. India skipper Sunil Chhetri too rates him highly. "If I had to pick one player from all the youngsters who have come through, it would be Sahal. He can change games,” Chhetri told ESPN FC.

However, the refined playmaker is under contract until May 2022 but the report stated that a six-figure transfer fee (in euros) would surely do the trick.