Most of the Indian players are sceptical about the league, says Chhetri

India skipper Sunil Chhetri on Thursday said that the national footballers were “sceptical” about the proposed IPL-style league because of the ongoing rift between the I-League clubs and IMG-Reliance.

“A lot of players have spoken to me, they are very sceptical about the development. They feel scared. I can’t take names but I try to calm them down. This is not a good position for the players to be. That is the reason I want the topsy-turvy situation to be resolved as soon as possibler. It doesn’t matter which way it turns. It should be solved,” Chhetri said on the sidelines of the launch of Nike’s home and away kit for the Indian team.

If the new IMG-Reliance league becomes a hit with the fans, clubs feel it will affect the already floundering I-League. The development has left the Indian club owners agitated and recently the I-League Professional Football Clubs Association (IPFCA) has decided not to release players contracted to them for the IPL-style league.

Chhetri, who joined the newly launched club Bengaluru FC last month, said he too was not sure about the IMG-R league and didn’t want to wait any longer.

“There was no risk in joining but nobody was sure what is going to happen. There was no definite plan and I didn’t want to wait that long. I met a lot of IMG-Reliance officials but I still was not sure. I have nothing against anybody and I am sure there will be a league and many players have signed already.

“I don’t want one body to go right and one goes left, that is not good for Indian sports.  You have to go in the same direction. Clubs just want the betterment of football.”