Beyond sporting considerations

Every player in the reserve squad,barring Chhetri,is in the 17-21 age group. In that company,Chhetri is a lonely,avuncular 27. And yet,he will share the aim of all his team mates,of breaking into the senior team. As much as Chhetri and his agent may argue that the move was based on footballing reasons,its hard to escape the feeling that his nationality played a major role. India,as we have grown used to reading,is a vast,exciting,untapped and rapidly expanding football market.

Tapping the market

Sportings official release,after all,says nothing about Chhetris footballing pedigree beyond the fact that he is India captain. It doesnt even mention what position he plays. Or speak of him undergoing a trial or a medical to prove his fitness. Not too long ago,remember,Chhetris attempt to catch the eye of Scottish club Glasgow Rangers ended at the trial stage. And it begins with this gleeful statement: Sporting Clube de Portugal has made a ground-breaking step into one of the worlds most expansive football markets.

This was only to be expected,of course. If footballing reasons were foremost,European clubs looking to sign an India-based striker would probably show more interest in someone like Odafa Okolie than in Chhetri. In his time in India,Odafa has scored a staggering 120 goals in 104 matches compared to Chhetris 58 in 114. But Odafa is Nigerian,and Nigeria isnt one of the worlds most expansive football markets.

India might be,but its hard to imagine Sporting Lisbon jerseys flying off shelves anytime soon,especially considering that Chhetri is only playing for their reserves. The Portuguese league doesnt occupy even a fraction of the mindspace that the English Premier League and the Champions League have captured in India.

But one football-mad corner of the country could represent a potentially vibrant market for the Portuguese. Goa,after all,has historical ties to Portugal. In pre-liberation times,European giants Benfica played matches there. More recently,Sporting Clube de Goa designed their club crest,and based their organisational structure,on Sporting Clube de Portugal. Most visibly,the state decks itself up in maroon once every two years.

During the World Cups and the Euros,all of Goa wears the Portugal jersey, says Nigerian Clifford Chukwuma,who has coached in Goa for many years,including stints at Sporting Clube de Goa and Sesa FA. But most Goans are only mad about the Portugal national team. I dont see any jerseys of Portuguese clubs.

Former India goalkeeper and Arjuna awardee Brahmanand Shankhwalkar puts this down to a generation gap. Now,after liberation,more than 40 years have passed. The older generation may still follow the clubs. I also followed them when I was a boy. The big clubs in those days were Benfica,Sporting Lisbon and Academica de Coimbra, he says. But now,I dont know. Wherever you go,just like the rest of India,you see people wearing Manchester United,Arsenal,Chelsea,Barcelona,Real Madrid.

New converts

But Chhetris move to Lisbon may just spark a new wave of interest among younger fans. The first ever Sporting Clube de Portugal India Fans page made its Facebook debut on July 5,the day Chhetri signed. So far,it has garnered 1,045 likes modest,but these are early days yet.

In any case,the wise men of Goan football are more concerned with how well Chhetri performs. When an Indian player goes abroad,I want him to play regularly and play well. He went to US,came back without playing,and it didnt really help Indian football, says Shankhwalkar. Now hes gone to the second division. I wish him all the best,but if hes a 17-year-old boy,then he goes to the second division and learns and develops his game,its a very good move. But Sunil is already 27.

Dempo and former India coach Armando Colaco,however,is enthusiastic. Whether its A,B,C or D,its very good, he says. Honestly,we dont match them. Im sure Chhetri will have a lot to learn. The pace and aggression are much higher. Before you receive the ball,you will have to know what youre going to do with it. If more players go abroad,and get used to that level of play,it will definitely help Indian football.

Sporting Lisbon at a glance

Former players of the club include Frank Rijkaard and Luis Figo while current Portueguese internationals Cristiano Ronaldo,Nani and Joao Moutinho also started out with the club.

Sporting was winner of the European Cup Winners Cup in 1963-64 and finished runners-up in the UEFA Cup 2004-05.

According to UEFAs club rankings calculated on the basis of success in European competitions over the last five years,Lisbon is at no. 17,ahead of Manchester City,Ajax and Tottenham Hotspurs.

Sporting Lisbon is the third most successful club in Portuguese competitions with 44 titles,behind Benfica 67 and Porto 64.