Veteran striker Sunil Chhetri was the only notable face in the 17-member Indian squad for the Hangzhou Asian Games as the All India Football Federation (AIFF) finally managed to stitch a second-rung team, but there is still a big question mark on head coach Igor Stimac accompanying the team.
Most of the clubs had shown unwillingness to release the 22 players named in the Indian squad as the Asian Games' football competition schedule clashes with the ISL, which starts on September 21.
But after prolonged and hectic parleys, the AIFF was able to announce an under-strength team made up of nine players from the original 22, including Chhetri, while the remaining were made up of inexperienced players from the clubs.
The national federation, which was able to stitch together the team just three days before its departure for China, still thanked the Indian Super League clubs and the FSDL "for coordinating with it for the release of players".
The Indian Squad:
Gurmeet Singh, Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem, Sumit Rathi, Narender Gahlot, Amarjit Singh Kiyam, Samuel James, Rahul K.P., Abdul Rabeeh Anjukandan, Ayush Dev Chhetri, Bryce Miranda, Azfar Noorani, Rahim Ali, Vincy Bareto, Sunil Chhetri, Rohit Danu, Gurkirat Singh, Aniket Jadhav.