Brazil match: Don’t become fanboys, says the man who took on Pele

There may be still about two months to go for Brazil’s international friendly against India on 3 October in Kolkata — but the Blue Tigers are already feeling the adrenalin rush. Sandesh Jhingan, captain of the national team, says the five-time world champions will be "dream opponents", but there is a piece of valuable advice from a select group of 70-somethings in the city on how to tackle the ‘mis-match’.

Just think about it: the Samba Boys, irrespective of how many members of the last World Cup squad make the trip Down Under and to India, are five-time world champions and perennial emotional favourites. The Blue Tigers, languishing at 138 in the FIFA rankings, are scheduled to play the ASEAN Cup in Hong Kong around that time, and it will be intriguing to see whether the hype around this marquee game affects their preparations.

Gautam Sarkar, legendary former international and midfield general who handled emperor Pelé with a fair amount of dignity in the historic Mohun Bagan-New York Cosmos match in 1977, offers a valuable tip: don’t be a fan boy. It was an exhibition match alright nearly 50 years ago at Eden Gardens, but it was as close as Indian football got to rubbing shoulders with Pelé and his 1970 captain Carlos Alberto, managing an honourable 2-2 draw on a rain-soaked surface.

‘’Don’t play for the selfie moments — this is the only advice that I would like to give the boys. I remember before our Pelé match, our coach (the late) P.K. Banerjee and senior pro Mohammed Habib told us that while we would hold the God of football in utmost respect before and after the match, we'd treat him as just another rival player on the pitch,’’ recalls Sarkar, whose pocket-sized frame belied his snatching abilities.  

The match, played at Eden as Kolkata had no football stadium then, saw Mohun Bagan put up a spirited performance that afternoon, with Shyam Thapa and Habib scoring for them. Sarkar, entrusted with the job of not allowing Pelé (then retired from international football and in his mid-30s) too much room, came out with flying colours.

A famous black-and-white frame of Sarkar hard-tackling Pelé made it to the front pages next morning, and still holds pride of place in his home. ‘’The fact that a Brazilian national team, irrespective of how many World Cup players it has, will be in action against India is a huge matter of pride. Given our ranking in international football, we would have never got the chance to host an official match-up and if it brings back the positive vibes for kids to take to the sport, I'm all for it,’’ the 76-year-old told National Herald.

Echoing his sentiments, Pradip Choudhury — a no-nonsense central defender who played alongside Sarkar — has fond memories. ‘’Yes, that match is synonymous with memories of Pelé and to some extent Alberto, but Italian striker Giorgio Chinaglia came with a huge reputation. We gave it our all, though the only factor which helped us were the heavy underfoot conditions.

‘’Since this match is in October, conditions are expected to be drier than we saw in our match and Salt Lake Stadium has a very good drainage system. However, it’s a lifetime opportunity for the boys and they should cherish it,’’ said Choudhury.

Speaking to Times of India, Jhingan said: “As an athlete, a footballer, you always crave for that big stage, the biggest opponent. You want to go up against the finest, best (team) in the world. Brazil have the best players. It excites us, though not in a generic way. It’s a game that not many footballers have a chance to experience. Imagine a point, and how much it will help in our world ranking.”