Club vs country impasse continues as Asiad and ISL near start

With the Indian men's football team slated to play its first match of the Asian Games on September 19, and the 10th season of the Indian Super League (ISL) scheduled to begin on September 21, there was uncertainty regarding players' availability for both competitions at the media day organised by the ISL here on Tuesday.

- Aditya Chaturvedi

All players in the King's Cup squad were scheduled to return from Thailand to their ISL clubs on Tuesday. All India Football Federation (AIFF) had wanted players in that squad also chosen for Asian Games to stay back in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where they would be joined by players from the squad that was playing in the Asian under-23 qualifiers in Dalian, China (India lost 0-3 to UAE on Tuesday to end with two defeats in two games). The players for the Games who were not in either squad were supposed to fly to Thailand on Monday (September 11).