Nayeem8217;s ambitious plans

Syed Nayeemuddin CALCUTTA, May 9: The NATIONAL football coach Syed Nayeemuddin, whose tenure has been extended till the 1998 Bangkok Asia...

Syed Nayeemuddin

CALCUTTA, May 9: The NATIONAL football coach Syed Nayeemuddin, whose tenure has been extended till the 1998 Bangkok Asian games, feels the team should start preparing for the Games from now itself.

8220;Of course, that might not be possible as the club level competitions are about to start,8221; he said.Nayeem, who led India to their first ever semi-finals in the Nehru Cup at Kochi, feels that the team could have done better if it had prepared properly. 8220;As such, I am quite happy with the performance, but you could make out that the players were tired after the hectic season.8221; The premier tournament was played almost immediately after the National Football League ended.

Nayeem is likely to meet the All India Football Federation secretary Kedar Nath Mour soon to discuss plans regarding the team8217;s preparations for the Asiad. 8220;It will be difficult to persuade the clubs to release some of their leading players at this stage, but we have to convince them that the country comes first.8221; He wants the AIFF to get tough on this issue.

Right now, Nayeem wants to embark on a talent-search mission.Laughing away suggestions that the quality of football was very poor in this edition of the Nehru Cup, Nayeem said that whenever India plays well, critics claim that the opposition wasn8217;t good enough. 8220;Some of the boys like Baichung Bhutia, Carlton Chapman and Joe Paul Ancheri played really well. Even the other coaches praised them.8221; He knows that he has his job cut out but doesn8217;t appear daunted. 8220;We have to improve in all departments of the game, particularly the defence and the goalkeeping.8221; India8217;s number one custodian Hemant Dora, Nayeem says, appeared to lack in confidence during Nehru Cup. 8220;He told me a few times that he wasn8217;t feeling very confident.8221;

Besides Dora, Nayeem does not have much faith in the other custodians 8220;We have to start looking for a goalkeeper, perhaps someone young who can be trained properly.8221; A blend of youth and experience is what he is looking for. However, he reiterates that any sort of combination will not work unless the team practices as one unit more often.

Nayeem might suggest foreign exposure trips for the side when he meets the AIFF secretary. He has a few more ideas for improving the standard of the game which he will put to use.The coach is very critical of the standard of refereeing in the Nehru Cup. 8220;We were deprived of genuine spot kicks,8221; he fumes. 8220;Our players were felled inside the box a number of times, but the referees turned a blind eye.8221;

He is determined to take up the matter with the AIFF and request for competent referees in future international matches.Nayeem, known for his outspoken ways, does not mince words in criticising a few of the Indian referees for their partiality towards the 8220;fair skin8221;. Till this is corrected, Nayeem says the Indian team will continue to feel cheated.