Experts urge more foreign exposure for Indian football By Krittivas Mukherjee, Indo-Asian News Service
Kolkata, Aug 11 (IANS) Indian football, celebrating a sensational triumph at the LG Cup in Vietnam, could improve by leaps and bounds with more foreign exposure, the country's former football stars say. Kolkata, the capital of Indian football, is celebrating the title victory in the LG Cup in which India beat hosts Vietnam 3-2 in an exciting showdown in Ho Chi Minh City Saturday. The Indians, down 1-2 at one stage, came from behind to claim their first title outside the sub-continent in 31 years. The last time India won a championship outside South Asia was in Singapore in 1971. "The victory will boost the morale of the boys no doubt and this will, hopefully, reflect in their performance in the Asian Games in Pusan," said former Indian captain P.K. Banerjee. Banerjee and several former footballers as well as experts say the quality of Indian soccer could undergo a quantitative change if the national team is made to play more often on foreign soil. "The talent in Indian footballers is not fully realised because it isn't matched against international standards. Performance improves when you play quality opposition, and this doesn't happen regularly," said former defender Sailen Manna. "The team we presently have could do much better if allowed more foreign exposure. The boys are bright and are bound to improve if placed against quality foreign opponents under foreign climatic conditions," added former international defender Subrata Bhattacharya. Bhattacharya, who coaches the national champion club Mohun Bagan and was adjudged the best Asian coach in June by FIFA, advocates more attention to building the national team. "It has been seen time and again that we falter outside the country. And the reason for that is our limited conversance with foreign conditions and players," opined former star striker Surajit Sengupta. In India cricket is religion and football is just one among the many other sports. Predictably, football enthusiasts and experts are unhappy with the limited publicity the game receives and the perpetual cash crunch it faces. "This success will reflect in India's performance in the Asian Games. To ensure that Vietnam is not a flash in the pan, the (Indian football) federation must see that our players are playing on foreign soils much more that we did in our times," said Prasun Banerjee, another prominent midfielder of the 1980s. The experts want the All-India Football Federation (AIFF) to take a more pro-active role in sending the national squad to play abroad. >From Vietnam, the Indian footballers travel to Britain where they will play two matches against local club sides as part of their preparations for the Asian Games. --Indo-Asian News Service =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-W-E-B---S-I-T-E-=-=-= To Subscribe/Unsubscribe from GoaNet | http://www.goacom.com/goanet =================================================================== For (un)subscribing or for help, Contact: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Dont want so many e=mails? Join GoaNet-Digest instead ! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Help support non-commercial projects in Goa by advertizing!! * * * * Your ad here !!
