Brazilian Jose Ramirez Barreto is one of the best ever foreigners to play in India. Here a video homage for Barreto, who currently plays for I-League Division 2 side Bhowanipore Club. Watch and enjoy!
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Senin, 18 Februari 2013
Rabu, 09 Juni 2010
Where is Indian football heading?
Our football focus is now fully on the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but for Indian football the last few weeks have been a roller coaster ride. There has been good news in the signing and trials of our players in North America and Australia, but then there has been the terrible news closer to home with the closing down of Mahindra United, the Vision Asia programme shutting down the Delhi and Tamil Nadu chapters plus the threat from Bob Houghton to resign as India coach and the players salary issue.
So I ask myself, "where is Indian football heading?" And I think I am not the only person to ponder about this question.
My years of experience tells me Indian football could head anyway and anywhere, positive or negative. And that does worry me a lot, it seems history keeps repeating itself when it comes to Indian football. We often show a lot of promise, but then come crashing down to earth again. We take one or even two steps forward, but then take a step back again; while others move ahead of us.
So where is Indian football really heading? I'll try to answer this question from my perspective. Giving you a run down of the positives and negatives.
If you look onto the pitch the signs are really good. Sunil Chhetri signed for Major League Soccer side Kansas City Wizards in March, while currently Subrata Pal is on trial with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in North America and Gouramangi Singh is on trial in Australia with A-League expansion franchise Melbourne Heart.
So finally over a decade after Baichung Bhutia tried their luck in the old English second division with Bury FC Indian players are getting a chance to show their talent abroad. It isn't in Europe yet, the continent that everyone would like to play on; but North America and Australia have strong professional leagues which could be a great stepping stone for our boys.
At least now our players are getting chances for trials abroad. A few years ago I had tried my luck for some boys here in Germany, but no one was even willing to invite Indian players for trials. A really difficult task...
Off the field lie the problems. The worst piece of news was the closing down of Mahindra United. The former National Football League champions were one of the strongest clubs in the I-League and their closure has send a wrong signal to corporates who were considering to launch their own clubs. As part of the I-League expansion new corporate clubs were set to be launched, but no corporate finally came forward to launch clubs in Delhi and Bangalore. The I-League therefore has postponed its expansion by a year and if these interested parties will come back has to be seen.
On the other side it was tragic that Shillong Lajong FC went down from the I-League. As I have written earlier they brought a breath of fresh air into the I-League, new ideas, a lot of passion, but if you are last in the league you just have to go down. Rumours say the federation is considering to expand the league to 16 teams to keep Sporting Clube de Goa and Shillong Lajong FC in the league, but I don't think this would be the right signal to the other clubs. Lajong needs to regroup in Division 2 and then come back stronger. It will help them and other clubs too, if there is no back door entry.
Further the weakness in the Indian football administration was exposed by the Vision Asia programme leaving the states of Delhi and Tamil Nadu. Delhi had been a launch project besides Manipur for Vision India, but the capital never really got started while Manipur is one of the best Vision projects across the continent. The Delhi Soccer Association blamed it on its constitution which over the years it could not amend as per AFC guidelines, but the AFC standpoint is rather different saying Delhi wasn't proactive enough and didn't implement its plans. Tamil Nadu meanwhile never got started.
The finale of the Bob Houghton saga is still to come, but as per latest infos Bob is still the India coach and he will return to India next week after watching some World Cup matches with a special focus on South Korea and Australia. So here is some further good news after all.
Also the federation has been able to sort out the salary issue with the national team players for the upcoming eight months ahead of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. Keeping such an issue pending would have caused unrest amongst the players and hampered our preparations severely.
Now I hope a number of friendly internationals will be finalised as part of a calendar up to January 2011. We need to play tough opposition ahead of the Asian Cup, otherwise teams like South Korea, Australia and Bahrain will just take us apart.
So I ask myself, "where is Indian football heading?" And I think I am not the only person to ponder about this question.
My years of experience tells me Indian football could head anyway and anywhere, positive or negative. And that does worry me a lot, it seems history keeps repeating itself when it comes to Indian football. We often show a lot of promise, but then come crashing down to earth again. We take one or even two steps forward, but then take a step back again; while others move ahead of us.
So where is Indian football really heading? I'll try to answer this question from my perspective. Giving you a run down of the positives and negatives.
If you look onto the pitch the signs are really good. Sunil Chhetri signed for Major League Soccer side Kansas City Wizards in March, while currently Subrata Pal is on trial with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in North America and Gouramangi Singh is on trial in Australia with A-League expansion franchise Melbourne Heart.
So finally over a decade after Baichung Bhutia tried their luck in the old English second division with Bury FC Indian players are getting a chance to show their talent abroad. It isn't in Europe yet, the continent that everyone would like to play on; but North America and Australia have strong professional leagues which could be a great stepping stone for our boys.
At least now our players are getting chances for trials abroad. A few years ago I had tried my luck for some boys here in Germany, but no one was even willing to invite Indian players for trials. A really difficult task...
Off the field lie the problems. The worst piece of news was the closing down of Mahindra United. The former National Football League champions were one of the strongest clubs in the I-League and their closure has send a wrong signal to corporates who were considering to launch their own clubs. As part of the I-League expansion new corporate clubs were set to be launched, but no corporate finally came forward to launch clubs in Delhi and Bangalore. The I-League therefore has postponed its expansion by a year and if these interested parties will come back has to be seen.
On the other side it was tragic that Shillong Lajong FC went down from the I-League. As I have written earlier they brought a breath of fresh air into the I-League, new ideas, a lot of passion, but if you are last in the league you just have to go down. Rumours say the federation is considering to expand the league to 16 teams to keep Sporting Clube de Goa and Shillong Lajong FC in the league, but I don't think this would be the right signal to the other clubs. Lajong needs to regroup in Division 2 and then come back stronger. It will help them and other clubs too, if there is no back door entry.
Further the weakness in the Indian football administration was exposed by the Vision Asia programme leaving the states of Delhi and Tamil Nadu. Delhi had been a launch project besides Manipur for Vision India, but the capital never really got started while Manipur is one of the best Vision projects across the continent. The Delhi Soccer Association blamed it on its constitution which over the years it could not amend as per AFC guidelines, but the AFC standpoint is rather different saying Delhi wasn't proactive enough and didn't implement its plans. Tamil Nadu meanwhile never got started.
The finale of the Bob Houghton saga is still to come, but as per latest infos Bob is still the India coach and he will return to India next week after watching some World Cup matches with a special focus on South Korea and Australia. So here is some further good news after all.
Also the federation has been able to sort out the salary issue with the national team players for the upcoming eight months ahead of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. Keeping such an issue pending would have caused unrest amongst the players and hampered our preparations severely.
Now I hope a number of friendly internationals will be finalised as part of a calendar up to January 2011. We need to play tough opposition ahead of the Asian Cup, otherwise teams like South Korea, Australia and Bahrain will just take us apart.
Kamis, 06 Mei 2010
Quo Vadis AIFF...
The Executive Committee of the All India Football Federation is meeting tomorrow in New Delhi.
And that meeting could be decisive for the short, mid and long term future of Indian football. Or it could turn out to be is just another ExCo meeting with no crucial decisions taken and they are postponed to a future meeting.
This has been the practice for years and especially in the last few month's, but this can't go on in the current scenario with key decisions pending.
Bob Houghton issue
The most pressing issue is the resignation of national coach Bob Houghton earlier this week.
The mood amongst players, media and fans is crystal clear. Bob needs to stay, at least up to the end of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in January next year. There is no point of discussion on this.
And if he wants to stay longer until 2013 then surely we should keep him. As the Asian Cup is only a step in our development and a new team will have to be build after the tournament with some senior players sure to resign.
Good to see is that in numerous interviews the players have come out in support of their coach. And said what a disaster it would be for them and their preparations. And one can only agree.
Bob has build something over the last four years. Now comes the toughest assignment for him and his boys so far. They need the best possible preparation, only then will we come back from Qatar with our heads held high.
And to make this possible tough decisions need to be taken, otherwise the federation will jeopardise the progress Team India has been making over the last few years. And we could be in for a trashing and some players might even resign from Team India before the tournament.
Mahindra United fallout
The other important issue is of the Mahindra Group winding up Mahindra United and pulling out of the I-League.
I had written earlier that this has been a threat for years, but the federation seems to have ignored the signs and were caught on the wrong foot on this issue.
It is a terrible sign to other corporates who have shown interest to join the I-League and what will those corporates do who have a team in the league. Could other follow in the near future?
Especially Mumbai could be hit hard if rumours are to be believed about Mumbai FC and Air India.
The AIFF needs to speak to the clubs asap and find ways to help them generate more revenue to run their teams. The issue of financial viability has to be addressed as some clubs are having problems again and again towards the end of the season to pay salaries.
And discuss ways on how a general sponsorship pool is created where clubs get money from the AIFF/I-League like leagues do around the world. Be it from central sponsorship deals or TV rights and not just travel expenses.
Even FIFA and the AFC need to tackle this problem, if they want to take Indian football forward and not see other clubs go the Mahindra way.
It is five to twelve and swift action is needed.
And that meeting could be decisive for the short, mid and long term future of Indian football. Or it could turn out to be is just another ExCo meeting with no crucial decisions taken and they are postponed to a future meeting.
This has been the practice for years and especially in the last few month's, but this can't go on in the current scenario with key decisions pending.
Bob Houghton issue
The most pressing issue is the resignation of national coach Bob Houghton earlier this week.
The mood amongst players, media and fans is crystal clear. Bob needs to stay, at least up to the end of the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in January next year. There is no point of discussion on this.
And if he wants to stay longer until 2013 then surely we should keep him. As the Asian Cup is only a step in our development and a new team will have to be build after the tournament with some senior players sure to resign.
Good to see is that in numerous interviews the players have come out in support of their coach. And said what a disaster it would be for them and their preparations. And one can only agree.
Bob has build something over the last four years. Now comes the toughest assignment for him and his boys so far. They need the best possible preparation, only then will we come back from Qatar with our heads held high.
And to make this possible tough decisions need to be taken, otherwise the federation will jeopardise the progress Team India has been making over the last few years. And we could be in for a trashing and some players might even resign from Team India before the tournament.
Mahindra United fallout
The other important issue is of the Mahindra Group winding up Mahindra United and pulling out of the I-League.
I had written earlier that this has been a threat for years, but the federation seems to have ignored the signs and were caught on the wrong foot on this issue.
It is a terrible sign to other corporates who have shown interest to join the I-League and what will those corporates do who have a team in the league. Could other follow in the near future?
Especially Mumbai could be hit hard if rumours are to be believed about Mumbai FC and Air India.
The AIFF needs to speak to the clubs asap and find ways to help them generate more revenue to run their teams. The issue of financial viability has to be addressed as some clubs are having problems again and again towards the end of the season to pay salaries.
And discuss ways on how a general sponsorship pool is created where clubs get money from the AIFF/I-League like leagues do around the world. Be it from central sponsorship deals or TV rights and not just travel expenses.
Even FIFA and the AFC need to tackle this problem, if they want to take Indian football forward and not see other clubs go the Mahindra way.
It is five to twelve and swift action is needed.
Jumat, 30 April 2010
Mahindra United to close down
April 30, 2010 will always be known as a bad day for Indian football.
One of India's premier professional football clubs Mahindra United, run by the Mahindra Group of Companies, is set to close down at the end of this season.
And everyone involved in the game was "shocked", surprised or at awe. The new damn for Indian football is here and then one of the biggest corporate clubs just closes down.
To insiders the threat of Mahindra United closing down will not be new. It has been something which the management has been saying for years, but as it remained a verbal threat many didn't believe it would come. The first real indications where that the contracts of players were not being renewed for the 2010/11 season.
And this seems to have taken a toll on the players, then a few weeks ago Mahindra United were in with a real chance to win the I-League title, but there was a sudden drop in performance and results.
It will not only be a loss to football in Mumbai, but for Indian football too which loses one of its best clubs.
It seems the cost of running a top I-League club was too high for a company of the size of Mahindra's. Can that be???
The clubs background
The company run club had been founded as Mahindra&Mahindra Sports Club in 1962 and was later renamed to Mahindra United in the summer of 2000. The team colours were changed from orange/white to red/black and the team got the nick name of "Red Devils" like their role models - Manchester United.
Over the last decade Mahindra&Mahindra had spend many millions of Rupees on their football team which also brought them a lot of success and trophies on the pitch.
Their biggest achievement came in the 2005/06 season when they won the National Football League title. They also won the Federation Cup twice in 2003 & 2005, the 2003 Super Cup and the very successful year 2003 also gave them the international President of Maldives Invitational Soccer Cup.
Locally in Mumbai they won 13 Mumbai League titles, while only a few days ago their Under-19 boys gained promotion to the Mumbai Elite Division winning the Super Division title. But also the junior sides will be closed down.
Youth policy
But Mahindra's aren't pulling out fully from football.
The company has decided to shift their focus from elite to youth development.
Club president Alan Durante told PTI, "We have decided to get out of competitive soccer and get into grassroots soccer at schools level. This means at the end of the I-League we would not be taking part in any competitive soccer but training school kids to make them better prospects in soccer."
And only a couple of weeks back the Mahindra NBA Challenge community programme was launched in collaboration with the US basketball body NBA.
Mumbai worries
And the closure of Mahindra United might not be the end of the road for Mumbai football. Currently the financial capital of India has three clubs in the I-League. In the summer it could be only one in Air India or maybe even none, if Air India get relegated.
The word is out that Mumbai FC are also a possible closure candidate. Especially with the threat of relegation it could be an option for the Essel Group as no one knows if Zee Sports will continue to be the television partner of the AIFF and the Mumbai FC has been struggling financially.
One can only hope for Mumbai this doesn't happen...
One of India's premier professional football clubs Mahindra United, run by the Mahindra Group of Companies, is set to close down at the end of this season.
And everyone involved in the game was "shocked", surprised or at awe. The new damn for Indian football is here and then one of the biggest corporate clubs just closes down.
To insiders the threat of Mahindra United closing down will not be new. It has been something which the management has been saying for years, but as it remained a verbal threat many didn't believe it would come. The first real indications where that the contracts of players were not being renewed for the 2010/11 season.
And this seems to have taken a toll on the players, then a few weeks ago Mahindra United were in with a real chance to win the I-League title, but there was a sudden drop in performance and results.
It will not only be a loss to football in Mumbai, but for Indian football too which loses one of its best clubs.
It seems the cost of running a top I-League club was too high for a company of the size of Mahindra's. Can that be???
The clubs background
The company run club had been founded as Mahindra&Mahindra Sports Club in 1962 and was later renamed to Mahindra United in the summer of 2000. The team colours were changed from orange/white to red/black and the team got the nick name of "Red Devils" like their role models - Manchester United.
Over the last decade Mahindra&Mahindra had spend many millions of Rupees on their football team which also brought them a lot of success and trophies on the pitch.
Their biggest achievement came in the 2005/06 season when they won the National Football League title. They also won the Federation Cup twice in 2003 & 2005, the 2003 Super Cup and the very successful year 2003 also gave them the international President of Maldives Invitational Soccer Cup.
Locally in Mumbai they won 13 Mumbai League titles, while only a few days ago their Under-19 boys gained promotion to the Mumbai Elite Division winning the Super Division title. But also the junior sides will be closed down.
Youth policy
But Mahindra's aren't pulling out fully from football.
The company has decided to shift their focus from elite to youth development.
Club president Alan Durante told PTI, "We have decided to get out of competitive soccer and get into grassroots soccer at schools level. This means at the end of the I-League we would not be taking part in any competitive soccer but training school kids to make them better prospects in soccer."
And only a couple of weeks back the Mahindra NBA Challenge community programme was launched in collaboration with the US basketball body NBA.
Mumbai worries
And the closure of Mahindra United might not be the end of the road for Mumbai football. Currently the financial capital of India has three clubs in the I-League. In the summer it could be only one in Air India or maybe even none, if Air India get relegated.
The word is out that Mumbai FC are also a possible closure candidate. Especially with the threat of relegation it could be an option for the Essel Group as no one knows if Zee Sports will continue to be the television partner of the AIFF and the Mumbai FC has been struggling financially.
One can only hope for Mumbai this doesn't happen...
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