© ISLFC Pune City will make the first pick at the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) domestic player draft to be held on July 22 and 23. The Pune club was the first name that was picked during a draw of lots by Jefferson Slack, IMG Football vice president, global business development, at a ‘Clubs Sequence Selection’ meet held here today. Pune will be followed by Team Mumbai, Kerala Blasters FC, Team Bengaluru, Atletico de Kolkata and Delhi Dynamos FC. The order will be reversed in the second round with the sixth team starting first. The seventh and eighth teams participating in the draft are FC Goa and NorthEast United FC, which have already named their set of 14 domestic players from their respective tie-ups with I-League teams Dempo Sports Club and Shillong Lajong FC respectively. Their pre-selected players will be announced as the draft progresses.In all, 84 Indian players who are part of the central domestic player pool will be picked across two days, with each day featuring seven rounds of the draft. The ISL has also made a provision of an additional seven players in the central reserve pool to serve as future replacements in case of injuries or other emergencies. Each club is mandated to recruit 14 Indian players from the domestic player pool towards a minimum squad of 22 which also includes one international marquee player and seven other international players.The domestic player pool features a mix of current and former Indian internationals alongside highly experienced club-level players and promising young talents from across the country. A total of 39 players have represented India at the senior level and 22 of them are or have been a part of the national team set-up in the past two years.In a statement, the ISL said, “The central player pool boasts of a combined 750 plus national team caps, proving the imperative experience at international level. In addition, 75 players have played a major role in their respective I-League teams in the past three years, with 29 of them leading their clubs to top three finishes. Emphasis has also been given to promote young players and to provide them with required experience through Hero ISL with 17 signed players in the under-23 age category." In terms of playing positions, the ISL has 27 attackers (forwards and wingers), 21 midfielders, 26 defenders and 10 goalkeepers. The pool includes 30 players on loan from four I-League clubs as well as free agents who have been centrally contracted.The 84-player list features senior internationals like Subrata Paul, Gouramangi Singh, Nirmal Chettri, Syed Rahim Nabi, Mehtab Hossain, Lenny Rodrigues and Francis Fernandes among others.
