- Maradona of Indian Football

Interviewed by 

Sanjeeb Mukherjee

"It was a dream come true for me to play against David Beckham and Andy Cole who have been my heroes for years."

 

The tattoo on his right arm speaks of the intense love this young Sikkimese has for the sport - it is a meticulously imprinted picture of footballer in action. When he was a kid he would scan newspapers to see if there was any football match being aired on TV. If yes, he would take a three-hour bus ride from his native Tinkitam to Gangtok to watch the matches as his village had no television sets.

It was not until 1992, that Baichung Bhutia’s prodigious talent came to the notice of football clubs. The diminutive young man’s spectacular performance in the Subroto Cup that year opened Heaven’s doors for him and he knew things would never be the same again.

One of the premier clubs of the country, East Bengal instantly signed him for a two-year contract. He showed his class in the field scoring goals with aplomb for his club and was hailed as the next big thing of Indian sports after Sachin Tendulkar.

The journey which started in 1992, took him to many big clubs in the country finally culminating in him becoming the captain of the National Squad and then the biggest thing to have happened to Indian football. Bhutia is today the only Indian footballer to play professional club soccer in England. He was selected by second division club F.C. Bury for its squad.

Bhutia speaks at length about his stint in England, on Indian football and also his future plans. 

Excerpts from the exclusive interview….

What has been your experience of playing in England for the F.C. Bury club?

I got to learn so many things. Their style of playing is completely different from ours. They are fast and have very high levels of stamina, physically also they have a much better physique than us. The attitude of players is also different, though they are far more aggressive and have the killer’s instinct they still play positively.

Is there any difference in training in India and England?

There is hardly any comparison. In the west training is far more professional. Every club has its own ground which is unheard of in this country barring a few big names. Every player is assigned a specific job in a match that he has to stick to throughout the ninety minutes of play.

What was it like to play in an exhibition match opposite Manchester United?

It was a dream come true for me to play against David Beckham and Andy Cole who have been my heroes for years. In fact I did get few scoring chances in the match which I unfortunately could not capitalize, but overall it was a very fascinating experience.

You started on a very high-note for F.C. Bury but in the later half of your contract you lost your touch. Any particular reasons?

Actually, the coach with whom I had developed a very good rapport was suddenly removed. He was the one who encouraged me to play as a forward. The new coach changed my position to the mid-field where I had to struggle with well-built English players to gain ball possession, which sometimes makes scoring goals very difficult.

You are India’s highest paid footballer and perhaps the only player to gain such star status. So why did you decide to shift base to England and play for a second division club?

The life of a footballer in this country is very limited. Though clubs in Calcutta pay good money, standard of football in India is no match for even second division soccer in countries like England. I went there to raise the quality of my game. Since my childhood I’ve wanted to be the country’s best footballer.

next page

Disclaimer