To protect players, ISL to be stretched longer in 2015

Sixty one matches were played in a space of 10 weeks in this season of the Indian Super League.

This season of Indian Super League is now down to the final game which is going to be played betweet Kerala Blasters and Atletico de Kolkata. (Source: Express photo by Ravi Kannojia)

Even before the curtains fall on the inaugural season of the ISL, organisers are already planning a few key modifications for the second edition. While there will be no change in the duration or the timing of the league, it will be extended by two weeks to space out the matches better and make it less strenuous on the players. However, it will conclude before Christmas, just like the current season.

Sixty one matches were played in a space of 10 weeks in this season of the ISL, which resulted in a team playing a match every five days, giving very little time for recovery. Consequently, there was a dramatic fall in the quality as well as number of goals scored in the later half of the tournament.

Andy Knee, IMG’s vice-president (football) said they will take feedback from teams and players before formally reviewing the tournament in January. “At the moment, though, I believe the league will be extended by two weeks. However, it will still end before Christmas because the players would like to spend time with their families and also keeping in mind the transfer window,” Knee said.

Crucially, Knee said there is also a possibility of doing away with the player drafts, instead giving the franchises complete freedom to form their squads. This season, the teams have signed all their players only on a one-year contract, which means they will have to reassemble the entire contingent for the next season.

The player retention clauses too are not clear at the moment, with Knee saying it is something they will work on when they meet the teams next month. “The thinking behind having drafts this season was to give the teams an idea about how things work in the football industry. They’ve learnt the trade quite well so we can have an option of not having drafts at all next season,” Knee said.

“But again, that’s something that will be finalised once we properly review everything we’ve done this time.”

The players, meanwhile, said they hoped the basic infrastructure would improve next season, particularly the training facilities. “When we are travelling, we are in good hotels but these are often an hour or more away from a training facility which is quite often inadequate. If you want a good performance, you need good training facilities. So my recommendation for next year is to get some good training pitches,” Kerala Blasters’ player-manager David James said.