In sheer magnitude, Bhaichung Bhutia is possibly the only Indian footballer who commands the same kind of attention as Sourav Ganguly, at least in these parts. And today, the Indian football team’s British coach Bob Houghton drew an interesting parallel between the two stars while elaborating on his plans for the national side.

Referring to the uncertainty over Bhutia rejoining the national side after having earlier announced plans of retirement, Houghton said: “Bhutia is always welcome and the most important thing is he is a team man and is liked by his co-players. So, there’s no question of taking disciplinary action even if he joins the camp late. This is in contrast to a player like Ganguly, who is as good but has to sit out for the greater interest of the team.”

Last heard, Bhutia is expected to join the camp on Monday.

The coach also outlined two key areas that needed attention. “The players have a decent technique and I will take care of the tactics. But, we need to work on the fitness part and I think we lack the power to compete with the best. That’s why I am looking for well-built footballers. Then, there’s the psychology part and the Indian players need to start believing in themselves,” he said.

The British coach distanced himself from the methods used by earlier coaches in ch arge of the national side. “For starters, my training camps will be short. I am not going to bore the players with long training camps as they have an adverse effect. No wonder Bhutia is finding motivation hard to come by given the fact that he had been part of similar training camps for the past 12 years,” he said.

... contd.