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Legendary India striker I.M. Vijayan is set to come out of retirement as he is expected to be in action for Kerala Police in this year’s Durand Cup, Sportskeeda can confirm.
The Durand Cup, which is the oldest cup competition in Asia and third oldest in the world, will be having its 126th edition this time and the biggest attraction will be the presence of three-time AIFF Player of the Year I.M. Vijayan.
Vijayan had started his career at Kerala Police and now seven years after retiring from professional football, the 44-year-old will be in action in a tournament that he has previously won with Mohun Bagan and JCT.
“My first club team Kerala Police have formed a good side this time and are keen on doing well in the Durand Cup. They wanted me to help out as a player so I happily accepted the chance. It’s been a long time since I played at the highest level so it won’t be easy, but I am looking forward to it. Durand Cup has always been a special tournament for me so maybe I couldn’t have picked a better stage for my comeback,” Vijayan told Sportskeeda.
The Durand Cup is expected to take place between September 2 and 19 at New Delhi’s Ambedkar Stadium with I-League clubs Pune and Mumbai FC also having confirmed their participation.
“Besides Pune and Mumbai FC we also have confirmation from Air India and are in talks with Kolkata and Goan I-League clubs also. The return of I.M. Vijayan from retirement will definitely be one of the highlights of this year’s competition,” a member of the Durand Cup organising committee told Sportskeeda.
Interested in football’s IPL
Former India captain Vijayan, who scored 40 goals in 79 senior international appearances, last played for East Bengal in 2005-06 and stated that his comeback for retirement is only to help out Kerala Police in this year’s Durand Cup and not beyond that. But the Arjuna Awardee is open to playing in the proposed IPL-style tournament.
“I just decided to comeback for the Durand Cup this time because Kerala Police said they need me. I don’t intend to start playing for good again, but the IPL tournament that is being planned is very interesting. Given a chance, I would definitely like to play in it,” Vijayan told Sportskeeda.
