With critics terming the Indian Super League (ISL) as any other big-budgeted sporting event bearing no impact on national football, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) Director Col Gautam Kar today said that the competition itself will answer back in due course of time.
"We always do things with a positive frame of mind. With commerce, entertainment and sport clubbed together, ISL is a complete package. Our aim is to get the public back in the stadiums. And things will certainly improve in due course of time," said Col Kar at the launch of the 'Fair Play Award' trophy at a city club, here.
Defending the league's policy to bank on foreign players, like Alessandro Del Piero, Marco Materazzi, Luis Garcia to name a few, for popularity and promotion, Col Kar said the Indian players will not only benefit but also improve their standard by rubbing shoulders with the best in the business.
"I started off as a village boy playing in chappals. But here I am wearing a suit and a tie. I have picked all this from you all. So I guess the players will certainly learn from each other and if the foreign player are better, our players will learn from them. It's always a two-way process," said Col Kar.
Terming the comparison between I-League and ISL 'unfair', Col Kar said that the leagues are like chalk and cheese and will certainly co-exist peacefully and successfully.
"I-League is a different concept as compared to ISL, so please don't compare the two. I-League has four foreign players and seven Indian in an XI while ISL has more foreign players and five Indian players. So no league or event is threat to each other," he said.
