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There is something instantly likeable about Luis Garcia. The 36-year-old charmer speaks from his heart and smiles a lot. And, he is quite a natural in front of the camera. t2 caught up with the Atletico de Kolkata star during the Aircel ad shoot’s lunch break on Monday.
What has this month-long stay been like?
Everybody is amazed about what has happened in a month. We’ve been to Northeast, Goa and Mumbai… everybody is talking about ISL. As I was shooting today, I heard some kids chanting, ‘Let’s football!’ Everybody is singing the song and getting involved in football and that is what ISL was looking for. They told us that Calcutta was a city of football more than cricket. We saw pictures of the Bengali derby and we saw how the stadium was for that game. We knew we would find that warmth. We are impressed because we did not expect so much. People are following us like crazy! Right now everybody knows us, they know where we play and that we are doing great.
And as a tourist how has it been?
To walk on the streets, for us, is an adventure because we see many things that we don’t see where we come from. Every day offers something new. We know the situation here is not easy for many of the families and we see how the kids are living, but they look happy. Many people tell you things about India but unless you walk on the streets, you don’t realise how India is. If we are not practising, we are at the hotel (Novotel) most of the time. On some afternoons we go and have coffee or see one of the monuments or do different things that people are telling us here in Calcutta. We’ve been to Mother Teresa’s house, Victoria Memorial, St. Paul’s Cathedral, New Market and Birla Temple. We’ve also been on boat rides on the Ganges.
With Atletico de Kolkata on top of the table, what’s the dressing room talk now?
We had said at the beginning of the league that we have to take things step by step. We are playing the way we like to play. We are playing as if there aren’t any more games tomorrow, like a final. We did good work in Spain for a month and now we are looking to accumulate as many points as we can to be in the semi-finals.... We talk a lot of football in the dressing room. We are watching many games together… the Spanish and (English) Premier Leagues. The other day we watched Real Madrid play Barcelona. There was also a small bet on which way the match would go. These are the good moments that we want to enjoy.
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Besides being the team’s marquee player, it seems you are also the team mentor...
I try to keep them in the right mood… neither very excited nor very down. Even though we are having a great run, we don’t say it too loud. We still have a lot of work to do and areas to improve upon. We train, try to focus, speak among ourselves… I try to speak to some of the guys to get them focused on the game… how to approach a game better. At the end of the day, I am here to play football but I also try and share the experience I have had with the teams (including Barcelona, Liverpool and Atletico de Madrid) and players I have played with before.
So, the famous Champions League 2005 win with Liverpool must be what you share too?
I am not that kind! (Laughs) It is not important to tell our players what happened a long time ago. I did not like it when I was young! It is good to share with them some situations but no comparisons. I give them my opinion and after that they can choose their own path. Every player is different, every team is different and every situation is different.
What do you remember from that Champions League final night against AC Milan?
It was a difficult night. I have been to many places and everybody remembers that final (Liverpool won 3-2 in a penalty shoot-out). We were so tired and we had a flight early in the morning. After the match we had dinner and drinks and took pictures with the Cup. In the morning we flew to Liverpool and went around in an open-roof bus. There were half-a-million people on the streets. And we had gone 48 hours without sleeping, but when you win, it doesn’t matter.
Did you ever have a footballing dream?
Of course you have dreams. I would have loved to win a Premier League or a Spanish League trophy, but I am proud of what I have done. It is not easy to arrive to play in a first division club and to be consistent for many years. I am not regretting anything. I think I have always been honest to myself and the team.
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Racing each other, singing, strumming the guitar, climbing up and down the Salt Lake stadium stairs — that’s how Atletico de Kolkata co-owner Sourav Ganguly and the team’s marquee player Luis Garcia spent most of their Monday. The two, along with goalkeeper Subhasish Roy Chowdhury, were shooting an Aircel 30-second TVC, set to air next month. Sourav’s daughter Sana told t2 at Salt Lake stadium on Sunday that she was hooked to football. Does she have a favourite player we asked Dada. “She doesn’t know enough (to have a favourite footballer), but she is excited. She is following football because of ISL. When I played cricket, she followed cricket and now that I am attached to football, she follows football,” smiled the doting dad. Sourav is also attached to his phones, checking his mobile between shots. What does he surf? “I don’t surf, but sort out work!” laughed Sourav who has a Samsung Galaxy S5 and an iPhone handy.
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