Internet Desk: I-League 2017-18 season is all set to start on 25th November when Kolkata giant Mohun bagan will face Minerva Punjab FC in an away game. It will run parallelly with the Indian Super League. Here we will discuss the four reasons for which everyone should definitely watch this year’s I-League.
KOLKATA DERBY
This would be the first time 22 months that the Kolkata Derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will be played at the Salt lake Stadium, which has been regarded as the “Mecca” of Indian Football. The whole nation saw the craze of FIFA U17 World Cup in Kolkata a month back and the football crazy crowd of both the teams would want to prove that East Bengal and Mohun Bagan are still the power houses of Indian football.
THREE NEW TEAMS
The three new additions in the I-League are in the form of Gokulam Kerala FC from Calicut, Neroca FC from Imphal, Manipur and the Indian Arrows who would be based in Delhi. The Indian Arrows is the new edition of Pailan Arrows. It would be a landmark year for Indian football too as the Indian U17 colts who represented in the recently concluded FIFA U17 World Cup and the Indian U19 colts will play together in the I-League. This would give chances to the young guns of Indian football to show their class in front of the fans.
YOUNGSTERS
A lot of Indian players have signed for various Indian Super League teams. After that Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and other I-League teams have signed a lot of young footballers. It’s a huge opportunity for the young footballers to showcase their skills in the I-League as they might get a call up from the Kolkata giants or any other ISL sides in next season.
NEW STADIUMS
The newly renovated Salt Lake Stadium hosted the big quarter-final, semi-final and final of the FIFA U17 World Cup. FIFA too gave it the certificate of the best venue during the World Cup. East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will play their home matches at this venue almost after 22 months. I-League’s new entrant Gokulam FC will play their home matches at the EMS Stadium in Kozhikode. Kerala is well known as a football crazy state and one can expect a full house of 40,000 people in the stand. On the other hand Luis Norton de’ Matos side Indian Arrows will play at the Ambedkar Stadium in New Delhi.