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Atletico de Kolkata’s marquee player Luis Garcia has said that the Indian Super League (ISL) will continue thriving in future years rather than fading away after just one season. The former Liverpool and Spain forward, in an interview with IBNLive Sports, added that Indian football is a long way off from meeting world standards at the moment and urged the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to work towards improving the football infrastructure in the country.
Talking about his experience of playing in the ISL, Garcia said: “It has been a great experience so far. The league has started in a good way for us [Kolkata], stadiums are full of passionate supporters and we feel the enthusiasm of the people for football everywhere we go.
ISL is a very attractive challenge, new league, many big names on it, amazing country hungry of football, you can't ask for many more things. Hopefully ISL will continue many years and we will see Indian players signing for teams around the world.”
Infrastructure lacking in Indian football
When asked about his one suggestion in order for Indian football to move forward in the near future, Garcia stressed on the importance of having good infrastructure.
“We don't know what is going to happen in the future but the most important thing is to build up a strong infrastructure in the country, and one strong league where the players can become better players every year. I think ISL will be a hit in the future and will help Indian football develop,” the 36-year old added.
Atletico Madrid well-placed to defend La Liga title
The Garcia-led Kolkata franchise are closely associated with current La Liga champions Atletico Madrid, whom Garcia himself played for in 2 different spells, one from 2002 to 2003 and another from 2007 to 2009. Garcia said Atletico will be well and truly in the running to defend their La Liga title come the end of the season as they are one of the best teams in the country at the moment.
“Atletico Madrid are a candidate, the team to beat, and they are one of the best in the country. They had one of the best seasons in their history last year and they will be there at the end of this one as well fighting for the trophy,” he signed off.
