Indian Super League: Team Pune to start Player Draft!

'Hero' Indian Super League today conducted the 'Clubs Sequence Selection', based on which the Central Domestic Player Draft will be organized over the next two days.Jefferson Slack, Vice President, Global Business Development, Football, IMG was entrusted with the responsibility of conducting the 'Clubs Sequence Selection' through a lot pick in presence of all the Hero ISL club representatives.Team Pune will be the first Club among the six participating clubs to make its best player selection from the list of 84 Indian best talents, when the action starts tomorrow, 22nd July 2014 in Mumbai.The second would be Team Mumbai to select its player of choice, followed by Kerala Blasters FC, Team Bengaluru, Atletico de Kolkata and Delhi Dynamos FC. The seventh and eighth team participating in the Draft would be Team Goa and North East United FC. It must be noted that both Team Goa and NorthEast United FC have retained their set of 14 domestic players from their respective I-League tie-up's Dempo SC and Shillong Lajong FC and hence will only be announcing their player selection as the round progresses.For the clarity, mention below is the Clubs Selection Sequence:1. Team Pune2. Team Mumbai3. Kerala Blasters FC4. Team Bengaluru5. Atletico de Kolkata6. Delhi Dynamos FC7. Team Goa8. North East United FCTeam Goa and North East United will remain as No.7 & No.8 team throughout the 14 rounds.Central Player Pool proceedings will commence at 10am on 22 and 23 July 2014, each day featuring seven rounds of the draft.

Hero Indian Super League, co-promoted by IMG-Reliance and Star India and supported by All India Football Federation, will have 84 Indian footballers in the Central Domestic Player Pool. The League has made provision of additional 7 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 across the country. A total of 39 players have represented India at senior level, of which 22 players who 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 the past 3 years, with 29 of them leading their clubs to top 3 finishes. Emphasis has also been given to promote young players and to provide them with required experience through Hero Indian Super League, with 17 signed players are under-23 year age category. Two players also vaunt of playing on international soil for various clubs.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.