Aizawl face Mohun Bagan in I-League opening match

Two former champions, Aizawl Football Club and Mohun Bagan will square off in the opening match of the 13th edition of the I-League, which has been reduced to a second tier domestic competition this season.

The All India Football Federation (AIFF) and some of the clubs were locked in a bitter face-off on which out of Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League will the top-tier competition in the country.

After a lot of acrimony, the issue was finally settled with the help of the Asian Football Confederation, with the ISL being made the top-tier league with a slot in the AFC Champions League play-off, while I-League champions would compete in the second tier AFC Cup.

As a concession to the clubs, starting with the 2022-23 season, the winner of I-League will stand a chance to be promoted to ISL. From the 2024-25 season onwards, performance-based promotion and relegation to and from ISL will be implemented.

A total of 110 games are scheduled to be played in over five-month long league in home-and-away basis among the 11 participating clubs. The AIFF has said that all the 110 matches will be telecast live on DSPORT.

Aizawl FC, champions of the 10th edition, will see their Kolkata visitors playing under a new coach and a new-look squad from the one which finished fifth last time around.

The green and maroons have roped in Spaniard Kibu Vicuna this season along with a fleet of his countrymen. The side under Vicuna has been together for about five months now and has played at least three competitive tournaments going into Saturday's opener.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Vicuna said, "We are working together for almost five months and we are 100 per cent ready to play the first game. We respect Aizawl because they are a good team. It is going to be a tough match but we want to start well in the competition and go back to Kolkata with three points."
"Mohun Bagan have full strength with six foreign players and we have only two foreigners with a lot of young players promoted from our academy. It is going to be a big challenge to play against strong Mohun Bagan."
On the importance of starting with a win, he said, "I want my players to believe in themselves and go with a positive mindset and try to get something out of it because everything is possible in football. A good and positive start will give us confidence going ahead."