Indian players in ISL's domestic draft
The Indian players' auction for the 2017 Indian Super League concluded last evening with a lot of variety of fanfare. 156 domestic players were bought by the 10 teams of ISL, which spent a record amount of Rs. 48.85 crore. With a drastic increase in the players' salary, let us have a look at the major highlights of the auction.
103% increase in players' salaries?
The salary of the domestic players saw a steep rise of 103 per cent this year, since the first draft came out in 2014. The teams spent Rs 48.85 crore for domestic players, as opposed to Rs 24 crore spent in 2014.
Lyngdoh and Edathodika the costliest players of ISL
Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Anas Edathodika, the centre of attraction in this year's domestic players' auction, went on to become the costliest players in the domestic draft. The duo went for Rs 1.10 crore each, after they were released by their respective teams. Lyngdoh was picked up by the defending champion Atletico de Kolkata, while new franchise Jamshedpur FC grabbed Edathodika.
Young talent given a priority by several teams
Apart from focusing on getting the experienced players on board, the franchises also stressed on scouting the young domestic talent. Sachin Tendulkar co-owned Kerala Blasters picked up a college student, who was impressive during the Reliance Foundation Youth Sports campus National football championship. Other teams like FC Goa, NorthEast United FC and FC Pune City also grabbed several young footballers for their teams.
Jamshedpur FC the highest spender in the draft
Every team has a cap of Rs 18 crore, of which are Rs. 12.5 crore is reserved for foreign players. This leaves the franchises with Rs. 5.5 crore to pick up domestic players. The new entrant in Indian Super League, Jamshedpur FC spent Rs. 4.73 crore for 15 players, followed by Kolkata (Rs. 4.42 crore), Delhi (Rs. 3.91 crore) and Mumbai (Rs. 3.73 crore).
