Andre Villas-Boas’ school-based strategy for Indian football

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While India is a sport loving nation, football remains a game which boasts of talents like Sunil Chhettri and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, while failing to make an impact on the world stage. According to Andre Villas-Boas, who was the youngest manager to win the Europa League with FC Porto, the gap can be bridged by encouraging and honing football talent among school going children, and simultaneously boosting infrastructure.

According to him there is no dearth of football talent in the nation, and the comments came on his trip as a Laureus ambassador. The former Chelsea coach conducted a class for 30 underprivileged children, as part of an initiative by Slum Soccer, and was impressed by the level of footballing talent as well as the communication skills and teamwork demonstrated by the children.

He also had a session with the goalkeeper of a local football club, Rurka Kalan. The young goalie Jatin landed the opportunity to meet the manager after winning a global drawing competition, which will also have his drawing engraved behind a 16^th century limited edition watch launched by Swiss watchmakers IWC Schaffhausen, who have partnered with Laureus Sport for Good. According to Villas-Boas, youngsters like Jatin, who are supported and trained by initiatives like the Laureus programmes, hold the key to a bright footballing future for the nation. He also stressed on the need for reforms in Indian football and drew attention to the fact that India has also been attracting international talent, such as Portuguese players.