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Baichung for foreign coaches in clubs, more teams in NFL
Kolkata, June 24: Giving his recipe for lifting the country`s sagging soccer standards, star striker Baichung Bhutia has suggested that leading clubs opt for foreign coaches and the National Football League be played over a longer period with more teams.
Kolkata, June 24: Giving his recipe for lifting the country's sagging soccer standards, star striker Baichung Bhutia has suggested that leading clubs opt for foreign coaches and the National Football League be played over a longer period with more teams.
"If clubs hire coaches from abroad, that will definitely be a good step, provided these foreigners have a good knowledge of the game," Bhutia replied when asked whether such a move would improve domestic standards.
"But the coaches must be brought from countries which have a rich soccer tradition. Because only then can they enrich us through their experience at the highest level of the game," the country's soccer icon said. The 26-year-old Sikkimese striker also felt that the top clubs emulate his outfit East Bengal in hiring quality physical trainers to keep their players fit as fiddle.
"This will not only improve the overall showing of the players domestically, but also ensure a steady supply of superbly fit players in national camps prior to international engagements," Bhutia said. Bhutia, who created a sensation by becoming the first Indian to take part in the English professional league in 1999 by joining Manchester's Bury FC, praised the AIFF for organising the high-profile NFL for the last seven years. "It's a step in the right direction," he said.
However, Bhutia said that the AIFF should increase, in a phased manner, the number of sides in the NFL. Bureau Report
"But the coaches must be brought from countries which have a rich soccer tradition. Because only then can they enrich us through their experience at the highest level of the game," the country's soccer icon said. The 26-year-old Sikkimese striker also felt that the top clubs emulate his outfit East Bengal in hiring quality physical trainers to keep their players fit as fiddle.
"This will not only improve the overall showing of the players domestically, but also ensure a steady supply of superbly fit players in national camps prior to international engagements," Bhutia said. Bhutia, who created a sensation by becoming the first Indian to take part in the English professional league in 1999 by joining Manchester's Bury FC, praised the AIFF for organising the high-profile NFL for the last seven years. "It's a step in the right direction," he said.
However, Bhutia said that the AIFF should increase, in a phased manner, the number of sides in the NFL. Bureau Report