Three-day ISL player draft kicks-off Monday

The three-day Central Domestic Player Pool Draft for the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) will kick-off here Monday.

The first day will see the League deciding club's sequence for the draft through a lot pick, while the following two days will witness club representatives making their best choice through 14 rounds of draft system.

Hailed across the world as an equitable system of player allocation across participating clubs, the Central Domestic Player Draft would be held for the first time in an Indian footballing event.

Each club is mandated to recruit 14 Indian players from Domestic Player Draft, towards the minimum squad of 22, which includes one marquee and seven international players as well.

The players will be go under the hammer for salaries ranging from Rs. 6 lakh to Rs.60 lakh.

The Indian Super League, co-promoted by IMG-Reliance and Star India and supported by All India Football Federation (AIFF), will have 84 Indian footballers in the Central Domestic Player Pool.

The League has made provision for additional seven players in the Central Reserve Pool to serve as future replacement in case of injuries or other emergencies.

The Central Player Pool features a mix of seasoned, experienced senior national players and promising young talents from the country.

A total of 39 players have represented India at senior level, of which 22 are or have been part of the national team set-up in the past two years.

The Central Player Pool boast of a combined 750 plus national team caps, proving the imperative experience at international level.

In addition, 75 players have played a major role in their respective I-League teams in past three years, with 29 of them leading their clubs to top three finishes.

Emphasis has also been given to promote young players and to provide them with required experience through the ISL, with 17 signed players under-23 year age category.

In terms of playing positions, the Hero Indian Super League has 27 attackers (forwards and wingers), 21 midfielders, 26 defenders and 10 goalkeepers.

The pool includes 30 players on loan from four I -League clubs, as well as Free Agents who have been centrally contracted.

The 84 player strong list features senior nationals like Subrata Paul, Gourmangi Singh, Nirmal Chhetri, Syed Rahim Nabi, N. Mohanraj, Mehtab Hossain, Lenny Rodrigues, Jeje Lalpekhula, Francis Fernandes among others.

Six clubs -- Atletico de Kolkata, Delhi Dynamos FC, Kerala Blasters FC, Team Mumbai, Team Bangalore and Team Pune -- will be competing with each other in the player draft.

Team Goa and NorthEast United FC (for Guwahati) having retained their set of required 14 Indian players from their own respective I-League teams, namely Dempo Sports Club and Shillong Lajong FC respectively, will not be active in player selection during the draft proceedings.

However, the names of their players will be announced at the draft as per the round sequence.

--Indo-Asian News Service

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