BATTLE OF THE CENTURIES
Novy Kapadia, the voice of Indian football, sets up a mega football clash with two Goliath XIs — one from the 20th century and another with those who played ball in the 21st. Also, a little surprise for Indian fans!
01. Goalkeeper: Gordon Banks (England) Excellent gripping, positional sense, a great shot stopper and a calming influence.
02. Central defender: Daniel Passarella (Argentina). A powerful defender, commanding in the air and with powerful tackles; excelled in going forward from defence to attack.
03. Libero: Franz Beckenbauer (Germany). A great reader of the game and the best ever in bringing the ball out and linking defence with midfield.
04. Central defender: Bobby Moore (England) Excellent reading of the game and positional play, timely interceptions and superb in heading and accurate clearances.
05. Right Back: Carlos Alberto (Brazil). Sound positional sense, good in anticipation and renowned for his speed on the overlap and powerful finish.
06. Right midfielder: Garrincha (Brazil). The greatest dribbler the world has ever seen, noted for his swerving free kicks, body feints, speed and crosses.
07. Defensive midfielder: Johan Neeskens (Netherlands). A dynamic box-to-box midfielder, hard tackler and accurate passer of the ball.
08. Attacking midfielder: Diego Maradona (Argentina). Incredible ball control and balance, scored amazing goals; an inspirational leader.
09. Left back: Giacinto Facchetti (Italy) Was the towering embodiment of the overlapping full back. He could shoot powerfully and in defence was quick to anticipate and tackled well.
10. Forward: Pele (Brazil). The complete player, goalscoring ability, a good passer, good in the air, quick, two-footed, a perfect footballer.
11. Forward: Johan Cruyff (Netherlands) Greased lightning with the ball, amazing turns, work rate, superb finisher and passer.
01. Goalkeeper: Gianluigi Buffon (Italy). Great shot stopper, safe pair of hands for aerial balls and grounders, good anticipation.
02. Right back: Cafu (Brazil). An all-round player, with great energy. He excels in overlaps and crosses well from the flanks. Intercepts moves with great speed of thought.
03. Centre back: Mats Hummels (Germany). A composed and hard-tackling defender. He reads the game well and intercepts moves with perfectly timed tackles.
04. Centre back: Fabio Cannavaro (Italy). An inspiring leader, noted for his excellent positional play and exceptional ability to read the game and intercept moves. The timing of his tackles was excellent.
05. Left back: Paolo Maldini (Italy). Renowned for his consistency, accuracy in passing and quick overlaps. His positional play, anticipation and tackling were immaculate.
06. Midfielder: Andres Iniesta (Spain). Another player with immaculate control and remarkable ability to wriggle out of tight situations; accurate passer of the ball.
07. Midfielder: Xavi (Spain). In the history of the game he is probably the finest passer of the ball. He could control the tempo with his clever passing and rotation of play.
08. Midfielder: Zinedine Zidane (France). A brilliant player, who created moves with visionary passing, scored goals; with superb ball control dominated the midfield.
09. Midfielder: Ronaldinho (Brazil). He had unbelievable skill and many tricks in his repertoire like curling free kicks and amazing dribbling skills. He could play as an attacking midfielder.
10. Forward: Lionel Messi (Argentina). Balance, ability to shift direction when in full speed with the ball, awesome dribbling and ability to play as a false No. 9 and anywhere in attack. He initiates moves and scores remarkable goals with placements and powerful shots.
11. Forward: Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal). A brilliant dribbler, with pace, power and close control. He has a wonderful spot jump and can score goals with headers, powerful shots and clever deflections.
The best Indian XI
Formation: 4-4-2
Goalkeeper
Peter Thangaraj (Hyderabad/Services/Bengal). An excellent shot stopper, noted for his gripping and penetrative
long kicks.
Defence
Right back: Sudhir Karmakar (Bengal). Excellent anticipation, positional play, covering and good overlapping.
Centre back: S. Azizuddin (Hyderabad). Outstanding header of the ball, noted for his tight marking, hard tackles, accurate first-time clearances and cross-field passes.
Centre back: Jarnail Singh (Punjab/Bengal). Sturdy, hard-tackling defender with a powerful kick.
Left back: Arun Ghosh (Bengal). Famous for his heading, timely tackles and tight marking.
Midfield:
Right midfield: P. K. Banerjee (Railways-retracting winger on the right) Famous for his speed on the flanks, explosive shots and penetrative crosses.
Left midfield: T. Balaram (Hyderabad-Bengal retracting winger on the left) One of the fastest Indian players with the ball, an excellent passer, dribbler and snatcher.
Central midfield: M. Kempiah (Mysore/ Bengal): Fittest player in India, great ball winner and accurate passer.
Central midfield: Yousuf Khan (Hyderabad): A complete player, sound in defence, linked well in attack, passed accurately and a good goal-scorer.
Strikers:
Inder Singh (Punjab). Prolific goal-scorer, noted for his quick turns and clever placements.
Chuni Goswami (Bengal). The finest dribbler in Indian football, known for his sharp finish and slick passing.
Coach: S.A. Rahim (Hyderabad)
Novy Kapadia is a journalist, columnist, football commentator and writer. His latest book is Barefoot To Boots: The Many Lives Of Indian Football, Penguin Random House India, Rs 399
21ST CENTURY T2OS XI
Formation 4-3-3
We play manager and pick out an XI from the players who missed a spot in Novy Kapadia’s team. Let’s kick off!
In goal: Oliver Kahn (Germany)
Major club: Bayern Munich
Terrorised the best of attackers simply with his commanding presence in the box. Prowess, power and passion personified — Kahn was truly a giant of the game.
Right back: Philipp Lahm (Germany)
Major club: Bayern Munich
Devoid of the flashy attributes often identified with modern wing-backs, Philipp Lahm was Mr Dependable. Keeping things simple and sensible was his mantra. You can count the number of times he was erroneous in defence or misplaced a pass in an illustrious 17-year career.
Centre back: John Terry (England)
Major club: Chelsea
Repeated failures on the international stage robbed Terry of the recognition he deserved. For Terry, it wasn’t just playing a game of football, it was like going into war. An old-school defender who wouldn’t think twice before putting his body on the line. They don’t make them like him anymore!
Left back: Roberto Carlos (Brazil)
Major clubs: Inter Milan, Real Madrid
A constant menace down the left flank, with his darting runs forward and thunderbolts with his left boot. Was electric in attack and assured in defence, easily the best full back of his generation.
Centre back: Carles Puyol (Spain)
Major club: FC Barcelona
What he lacked in aptitude, he made up with attitude. While he was a superb tackler and dominant in the air, many others were better. But what made him stand above his contemporaries was his warrior-esque defending — fiery and fearless.
Right midfielder: Clarence Seedorf (Netherlands)
Major clubs: Real Madrid, Inter Milan, AC Milan
Edges out the silky Pavel Nedved for this spot. A tank in midfield, Seedorf adds muscle and goals... all kinds of them from midfield! What made him stand out was his colossal work rate, a rarity for players of his calibre.
Central midfielder: Andrea Pirlo (Italy)
Major clubs: Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus
The ultimate deep-lying playmaker with unrivalled vision and a wide range of passing. Often made his opponents look like 10-year-olds — such was his effortlessness. He was the last of his breed.
Attacking midfielder: Kaka (Brazil)
Major clubs: AC Milan, Real Madrid
Kaka’s peak was short yet spectacular. Trademark bolting runs from the midfield, which more often than not ended with a picture-perfect finish, all with a gentle smile. If not for his niggling injuries, the Messi-Ronaldo duopoly wouldn’t have existed.
Right forward: Luis Figo (Portugal)
Major clubs: FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Inter Milan
At times it seemed like the ball was glued to his feet — such was his control. Starting on the right, he dribbled past defenders at will and drifted inside. A striker’s delight, Figo laid the goals on a plate for his frontmen.
Centre forward: Ronaldo (Brazil)
Major clubs: Inter Milan, FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, AC Milan
The real Ronaldo is the biggest name to miss out from the Novy Kapadia XI. Was built like a tank but very few scored goals with such ease and elegance. Gifted with pelting pace, swift skills, top-notch technique and flawless finishing skills — he is the greatest number nine of the 21st century.
Left forward: Thierry Henry (France)
Major clubs: Juventus, Arsenal, FC Barcelona
Sharp skills coupled with a sharper mind made him one of the most lethal goalscorers of his generation. While he’s lauded for his clever movement and dazzling dribbling, many overlook how unselfishly he’s often set up his teammates for a goal. All hail King Henry!
— Rwitoban Deb
