Bengaluru FC follows ISL example, refuses to release players for national team camp
IN THE CURRENT schizophrenic environement in Indian football, the hardest thing to do these days is to hold a preparatory camp for the national team without hiccups.
A couple of months back the Blue Tigers' camp to prepare for the World Cup Qualifier fixtures away in Oman and Turkmenistan had to be cancelled because ISL franchises did not want to release players for the camp. Now, the ongoing NT camp ahead of the SAFF Championship to be held in Trivandrum from December 23 onwards has been hit hard by Bengaluru FC's stern refusal to release players for it.
9 Bengaluru FC players, including captain Sunil Chhetri, were among the 40 players called up to the camp, being held from today in Kochi, by coach Stephen Constantine. 2 of them are still playing in the Indian Super League; the other 7 were supposed to join the camp by yesterday night.
But Bengaluru FC officials have told AIFF that their players are extremely tired after playing in the ISL, and they cannot join the camp this early. The BFC officials believe if they are not given adequate rest now, they will be unable to do their best in the upcoming I-League season.
The AIFF has not taken kindly to this move by Bengaluru FC and high-level officials, including president Praful Patel, are believed to be involved in attempts to resolve this matter.
Bengaluru FC, however, are citing the fact that when it was inconvenient for ISL franchises to hold a national team camp, AIFF summarily scrapped it. But now that they want to release their players a bit late for a camp, the AIFF is refusing to budge. This double standard, according to BFC officials, proves how the AIFF bows and scrapes to every whim of ISL and IMG-Reliance but turns into a self-righteous disciplinarian when it comes to I-League clubs. They are now citing the same FIFA rule that ISL franchises hid behind back then: that a club is bound to release a player for national duty 3 days before the match. ISL franchises did just that and demanded credit for doing the bare minimum for the national team, and now Bengaluru FC want to follow their glorious example.
Clashes like this between different stakeholders in Indian football was perhaps made inevitable the day the AIFF said yes to accomodate a private tournament, making the calendar impossibly hectic, where clubs and players don't have the leg room to carry out their work without taxing themselves or being rushed.
The national team, meanwhile, continues to suffer, as they play matches under-prepared and suffer defeats. And their SAFF Cup journey, too, has had a rocky start.
