The national football team's camp will be held in Kolkata after 15 years when initial 23 probables assemble in the city on August 15 to prepare for next month's international friendlies. The training sessions will start from August 16, the AIFF said in a statement.
The Blue Tigers last assembled in Kolkata for training way back in 2006 ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qualifier against Saudi Arabia.
The camp will be conducted under a secured bio-bubble adhering to the laid-down health parameters in wake of the current Covid-19 pandemic situation. The contingent will also be undergoing regular testing.
National team head coach Igor Stimac has named an initial list of 23 probables, leaving out players from ATK Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC owing to the two club's commitments in the AFC Cup in the Maldives. Players from both clubs will be joining the squad immediately after finishing their club commitments in the continental tournament.
"I am very happy to meet with my players again and get ready for the upcoming challenges forward together," Stimac said.
"We wish both the Indian clubs good luck and hope they do well in the AFC Cup. Meanwhile, we need to check on the rest of the players who will kick-off the camp with us next week, and choose the best ones until the rest of the players join us," added the Croatian.
The 23 players who will be joining the camp on August 15 are:
GOALKEEPERS: Dheeraj Singh Moirangthem, Vishal Kaith.
DEFENDERS: Ashish Rai, Seriton Fernandes, Adil Khan, Chinglensana Singh, Narender, Rahul Bheke, Akash Mishra, Mandar Rao Dessai.
MIDFIELDERS: Lalengmawia, Glan Martins, Jeakson Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Brandon Fernandes, Sahal Abdul Samad, Halicharan Narzary, Bipin Singh, Yasir Mohammed.
FORWARDS: Rahul KP, Farukh Choudhary, Ishan Pandita, Rahim Ali.
The ATK Mohun Bagan and Bengaluru FC players who will be joining the camp after their AFC Cup duties are:
GOALKEEPERS: Amrinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh Sandhu.
DEFENDERS: Pritam Kotal, Ashutosh Mehta, Sandesh Jhingan, Subhasish Bose.
MIDFIELDERS: Udanta Singh, Pronay Halder, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Ashqiue Kuruniyan.
FORWARDS: Liston Colaco, Manvir Singh, Sunil Chhetri.
(With PTI inputs)
