Mumbai, Aug 12 (IANS): Colombian defenders Jairo Suarez and Andrés González have signed up for the international players draft for the inaugural season of the Indian Super League (ISL) that would be held in October.
Suarez and González, along with 47 other international footballers, will make up for the required quota of 49 players in the central international player draft pool. The draft will take place here Aug 21.
Both Suarez and González are thrilled to participate in and support the growth of football in India.
“It’s an honour to represent Colombian football in a country as important as India. It is a great responsibility and I hope to entertain the fans with my performance,” said 29-year-old Suarez, who plays as right back for Colombia’s historic team Santa Fe (Categoría Primera A).
The 30-year-old González, who is a centre back, had 11 international caps for Colombia, who are currently World No.4.
“I am happy to be part of the new Indian Super League. I see the League heading in right direction, engaging millions of Indian fans and drive improvement in the playing standards. I look forward to sharing space with the legends of the game and share my experience with the youngsters in India.”
The ISL, promoted by IMG-Reliance and Star India and supported by All India Football Federation (AIFF) will feature eight clubs competing for top honours.
Four Clubs, Delhi Dynamos FC (Mads Junker and Mortsn Skoubo), FC Pune City (Emanuele Belardi and Bruno Cirillo), NorthEast United FC (Isaac Chansa and Cornell Glen) and Atletico de Kolkata (Borja Fernandez) have exercised their opportunity to sign maximum two international players on their own and , the league will bring in the rest of required 49 players to the central international draft pool.