Churchill Brothers sign Ivory Coast forward Krizo

Panaji: Churchill Brothers have completed the signing of their former Ivory Coast forward Gnohere Krizo, one of the two foreign arrivals at the club during the January transfer window.

Krizo will step into the boots of Kurtis Guthrie. The Ivory Coast forward has experience of playing in India having previously donned colours for Real Kashmir, Bhawanipore and Churchill during the 2021-22 season. He last played for Karbala'a FC in the top-tier Iraq Stars League.

Spanish midfielder Juan Mera has also left the club, prompting Churchill to look for two new foreign players during this window.

“Krizo is back at Churchill Brothers and we are still working on the other foreign player,” a senior club official told TOI on Sunday. “We are looking at other positions for the second foreigner and not a straightforward replacement for Juan Mera.”

Juan, a I-League champion with Punjab FC, had limited minutes during his time at the club, as coach Dimitris Dimitriou’s looked at other foreign options which were available to him. Club sources said “Juan’s playing style did not fit into the coach’s philosophy.”

Dimitriou’s has opted for Sebastian Gutierrez in the attacking midfield role and the Colombian has lived up to his reputation with some inspiring performances. Pape Gassama (Senegal) is an automatic choice in midfield.

England striker Kurtis Guthrie raise expectations as he joined Churchill from Scottish Premiership side Livingston FC, the first instance of a player headed to the I-League straight from the Scottish top tier. For the I-League, though, Dimitriou’s first-choice striker has been South African striker Wayde Lekay, who is now the leading scorer with five strikes.

“This is a real family-run club, and (club owner) Churchill Alemao wants to see his club in the ISL (Indian Super League). It is a club that has won the I-League multiple times. I was chosen as the leader of this attempt to win again. I’ve given him my word that I will give it my all,” said Dimitriou.

Churchill are leading the I-League table with 13 points from their six matches, which includes impressive wins against initial favourites like Inter Kashi and Gokulam Kerala. After starting with a draw against Shillong Lajong, they’ve won four of their last five games, which includes a 3-0 defeat of Dempo SC in their first home game.