Ruud Gullit: Supports Koevermans as India coach!

Former Dutch international captain and AC Milan star Ruud Gullit is in Kolkata and when asked about his former Oranje team mate Wim Koevermans, who has been appointed as Team India coach, he was in full support of Wim.

"I think Indian football is in good hands. The most important for these coaches is to develop youth football because that is where it all starts. It's important to have training facilities, the pitches," Ruud Gullit said.

"It is not about how many tricks a budding talent knows. It is more about how much he knows about the game, how much he understands football. The approach should be direct, it should be either about scoring goals or saving them," Gullit, himself a coach and TV expert, explained.

52 year old Wim Koevermans had been part of the Netherlands team which had won the 1988 European Championship in Germany under then captain Ruud Gullit.

And Gullit understands the problems that a large country like India faces in developing its football. Comparing it to the Netherlands he said, "Every club there has an amateur team and each team has about three or four pitches. For this reason, every kid has got the opportunity to play in the pitches."

"So you have to first think of building pitches, the artificial ones because of the weather," Gullit added.