Diego Forlan and Sunil Chhetri agreed that should be one lengthy tournament in the country.
When Indian Super League (ISL) came into existence in 2014, it was believed that together with I-league, the brand new tournament would help in waking up the sleeping giant of football.
ISL did make all the right noises by attracting people to the stadium and soon claimed to be the fourth-most watched football league in the world.
But what was believed to be a beautiful marriage between two football competitions soon turned into a disastrous divorce. The sport's world governing body, FIFA, backed I-league as the official league of India while the All India Football Federation (AIFF) gave enough indications to make ISL the premier tournament of the country.
I-league was once a 14-team competition but with constant withdrawals, its last season saw only nine outfits. Sporting Clube de Goa and Salgaocar were the latest to quit the official tournament, further reducing the scope of exposure for local footballers.
Mumbai City FC stars Diego Forlan and Sunil Chhetri have made it clear that there should be one lengthy tournament in the country.
Indian fans often think that foreigners playing in ISL are here only to earn some quick buck but Forlan had a point to ponder.
\"Considering that I am 37 years old, this is a great format for me as my job would be done in three months but it's not good for Indian football. If you look around the different leagues of the world, they play at least 40-50 games and that covers the whole year. Some of the local lads may play ISL but not all get opportunities. Yes, there are many who train with the team but participating in an official match is a different ball game,\" Forlan said at a press conference organised here on Tuesday ahead of Mumbai City's last group stage ISL match.
The Uruguayan wizard had words of advice for AIFF. "They have to sort it out between the two leagues and merge everything which would go on for the whole year because there are some talented players doing pretty well and it would be great if some more are pushed into system from behind."
Chhetri reiterated Forlan and sounded optimistic about a solution to the ongoing problem.
"One longer league is going to be beneficial for everyone and this is very clear to all who are involved in both the tournaments. It would be great if new states are brought into equation. When and how they are going to do it is not something I can comment on but I am sure they are working very hard on the issue.
"The number of teams can go up to 20 and if we have a longer league with more clubs, doesn't matter whether it's named I-league or ISL, the youngsters will get more exposure with high-profile coaches and solid infrastructure and that is one thing we would all love to see," Chhetri said.
The Indian skipper has been on a high after guiding Bengaluru FC – an I-league side – to a historic AFC Cup final and now with Mumbai City making their maiden playoffs, the prolific striker couldn't have asked for more.
"It gives me immense happiness that we have reached the semifinal, but that's just the first stage. We have achieved our initial target and thankfully there are no injury concerns. We will go all out and try to win the last game against Delhi, draw or defeat is not on our mind. And having played enough we understand that we cannot think much ahead because there's a huge semifinal in between,\" said Chhetri.
Forlan has mostly played behind the striker in Mumbai but he seemed to be content with the role.
"For nine years I have been playing as a first striker but it depends on the team and the players in which I am playing. After Sunil joined us, sometimes he drops back and I finish. In this team, I like the freedom to play wherever I want to. I feel comfortable when I look up for space and stay near the goal," Forlan said.
The 37-year-old was vocal about the good times he spent in India but when he was asked whether he would come back for a longer league – if the marger takes place – Forlan kept the cards close to his chest.
"Entire season in India? I don't know what I am going to do once the league ends. I have to see, get whole information before deciding," he said.
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