SUNBURNT TERRACE: the road in Asia is fraught with extra burdens for Indian clubs

BEFORE AND AFTER the pivotal I-League clash between Bengaluru FC and Mohun Bagan, both the head coaches of the competing teams took a few shots at each other. This ever-heated war of words made for the perfect build-up to a crucial game and made for crisp, hot copies in the newspapers. But amidst all the sword-clashing, some very pertinent issues referred to by the gaffers in their bites were left un-emphasized by the media. One of them was about them touching on the fixture issue.

The talk of it came camouflaged within two different contexts. Ashley Westwood complained that Bagan was receiving favours from the AIFF, who changed dates and times of a couple of their games to accomodate for their AFC Champions League qualifier matches. Sanjay Sen, on the other hand, talked about it in light of the show-caused notice that AIFF had served him for his infamous "sold out" comment.

The larger underlying truth here is that Indian clubs, through faults of their own as well as of the system, are in no fit state to play in Asia right now; and unless there is a total overhaul to the way the domestic calendar functions, they will never be serious competitors at the Asian level.

At the time when Sen made the remark that got him into trouble, Mohun Bagan were scheduled to play 4 matches in 11 days, and he wasn't happy about it. He wasn't angry that AIFF made the fixtures like that, and he was unhappy that his own club officials didn't act fast enough to resolve that issue, and in the end it was the players who had to bear the brunt. In the upcoming months, too, the fixtures are going to be tough for both MB and BFC. The I-League can't afford to keep a puritan weekend-by-weekend fixture because thanks to ISL it has too short a window to finish all its matches. Add AFC Cup to the list and the long distance travels, the constant shifting to totally different climate patterns - things European clubs playing domestic and continental games do not have to deal with - the whole thing can get a bit overwhelming. And it can potentially hurt them in the I-League title race. Although it wasn't a defining factor, it'd be unwise to assume that Bengaluru FC's frequent away games in Asia didn't put extra pressure on them during the last month of league; and in the end they lost the title to Bagan.

There's also an issue with stadium availability with Mohun Bagan. Right now the Salt Lake Stadium, the only AFC-approved arena in Kolkata, is under renovation for the U-17 World Cup 2017. As a result, the Mariners will have to play their AFC Cup group stage matches in Guwahati. But a few months down the line, both the stadiums in question will be taken over by ISL franchises, leaving a huge question mark over where Mohun Bagan will play their home games if they make it to the knockout rounds of the AFC Cup.

But the biggest issue that both Bagan and Bengaluru will be facing this year in Asia will be player availability. If the Indian clubs manage to reach the final stages of the AFC Cup, they will potentially have to play matches deep into October. That falls right in the middle of the exclusive window that ISL claims for itself in the Indian football calendar. Now, many of the two clubs' players, including Sunil Chhetri, Thoi Singh, Keegan Pereira, Raju Gaikwad and Subhash Singh are on loan from different ISL franchises. They, obviously, will have to return to play in the private tournament. And now that ISL has mandated that all franchises should have one-year contracts with at least 8 Indian players, there will be a bigger tug for the other players as well. It won't be surprising if the lure of money drags enough crucial players away to the cash-rich ISL to leave the clubs crippled in the face of their toughest games in the calendar.

So after navigating an extra congested fixture, making all sorts of extra efforts to play in the continental championships, all these Indian clubs can look forward to if they find initial success in the AFC Cup is more uncertainty regarding players and grounds; a couple of wrongs away from a major, international embarrassment on or off the field. 

The solution obviously will be to merge the ISL with I-League and end this unreal situation where a private tournament that does not have anything to do with the FIFA or AFC calendar can undermine the clubs that are representing India in the continental stage. But since there is little chance of that happening in the 2016-17 season, both these clubs will have to prepare for a tough off-the-field battle to make sure they have a chance to compete seriously.

Bengaluru FC will have to negotiate hard and try to win back some of its players from ISL franchises, and that may include shelling out large sums of cash. Mohun Bagan, meanwhile, will have to shed their old habit of closing down their practice sessions during ISL and stay active, while potentially having to play their players extra money to refrain them from leaving for ISL, at least till early November, when the AFC Cup concludes. Both clubs will also have to play a good number of friendlies - with foreign clubs if possible - to properly prepare for the AFC Cup ties because state leagues won't provide the same level of match practice, and the I-League will not resume before January. 

Basically, both clubs will have to go beyond themselves to make sure their squad is ready for the challenge that the AFC Cup will throw at them, quarter final onwards. There will be some monetary rewards, but not nearly as much as the investment this initiative will require. And there's the very real possibility of all this being crushed into nothingness by an on-field defeat. In no other country do the clubs playing in the continent have to face burdens of this kind.

Taking all that into account, it may appear to be more convenient for everybody involved - for the AIFF, the ISL franchises and maybe even the clubs - not to progress too far in the AFC Cup. It will save them a whole bunch of trouble related to player contracts, ground availability and more importantly, not disturb the happy status quo that AIFF and IMG-Reliance have weaved; mandating all I-League clubs and every other aspect of Indian football to slip into shadows while ISL franchises get to have their two months in the spotlight.

And it is this monopolistic, anti-meritocratic situation which goes against the very spirit of football is the biggest ill omen Indian clubs face in their quest for making a name for themselves in Asia.