New Delhi: Record champions Mohun Bagan wish the Durand Cup to be staged sans overseas players and have requested the All India Football Federation to make it an all-domestic affair.
The 134th edition of Asia’s oldest football tournament will kick-off on July 23 with East Bengal facing South United with the final scheduled on August 23 with Kolkata’s Yuba Bharati Krirangan chosen as the venue for the opening match and the final.
Seventeen time winners Bagan are clubbed with Mohammedan SC, Diamond Harbour and Border Security Force in Group B. A total of 24 teams will compete in the tournament.
They have been divided into six groups and after a round-robin league format, winners and two best second-placed teams of the groups will progress to the knockout stage.
Keeping in mind the AIFF’s stance of finding avenues to provide more game-time for home-grown players, particularly goal-shy strikers, Bagan have sent a letter to federation president Kalyan Chaubey requesting consideration of their request.
“We, Mohun Bagan Super Giant, hereby request you to make Durand Cup all domestic player tournament. This will enable development of Indian players and will provide more opportunity to Indian strikers and centre backs to play. Let us know if you want to have any discussion around this,” Bagan wrote.
At its executive committee meeting on July 2, a proposal for reduction of overseas players from the I-League and the Indian Super League was floated, with the federation willing to speak to stakeholders over it.
“While all the talks of Indians not getting enough get chance to play, why is then foreigners being allowed at the Durand Cup?,” a person aware of the development, who didn’t wish to be identified, wondered.
“On one hand there is no much talk of more game-time for Indian players while on the other hand teams have been allowed to field six foreigners in the Super Cup for the last two seasons.”
In the ISL and I-League, four overseas players are allowed in the starting XI while six are allowed to be registered in team squads. The AIFF is yet to comment or send a reply to Bagan over their request.
On July 13, Chaubey had himself expressed concerns over India’s lack of goals in a media interaction, while commenting on the national team’s loss to Hong Kong in an AFC Asian Cup qualifier on June 10.
It was the last game in charge for Manuel Marquez, who, as reported on June 9, had made up his mind to leave in April.
Bagan demands met, participation confirmed
After seven ISL teams withdrew from the Durand Cup over uncertainty in Indian football, Bagan had put forward a list of demands to the tournament organisers before confirming its participation.
The demands included access to their preferred training facility on the outskirts of the Yuba Bharati in order to prevent injuries that might arise from practising at the astro-turf of the AIFF’s national centre of excellence.
Assurance of even ticket allocation assurance, fixture scheduling with no group-stage derby with East Bengal and sorting of administrative issues were the other demands, all of which have been met by the organisers.
Bagan, beaten finalists last season, have now confirmed participation of their reserve side though their opening match on July 31 against Mohammedan Sporting could be pushed back to August 2.