Calcutta: The city’s sporting fraternity paid homage to legendary goalkeeper Peter Thangaraj, who passed away on Tuesday, describing him as one of the greatest footballers the country has seen.

The following are excerpts:

P.K. Banerjee: Thangaraj was a great sportsman and was adjudged one of the seven best goalkeepers in Asia in the last century. He was one match junior to me in international football and we played together for the country many times. His demise is a big loss for the game. His long throws often foxed the opponent and after picking up one such long throw that beat the defence, I scored a goal against Burma (now Myanmar).

Subrata Bhattacharjee: It’s sad news for all of us. Everybody has to go when it’s time. But it’s hard to come to terms with the death of a person like Thangaraj. He was a stalwart. Playing at the highest level for so many years with such distinction is exceptional.

Chuni Goswami: He is the finest that India has produced. Thangaraj was a perfect team man who used to guide the players from the last line of defence. As he came from the Services, he was very disciplined and was a tower of strength under the bar.

Gurbux Singh: Thangaraj was a pillar of Indian football. He was almost my age and he belonged to the golden generation of Indian football that included P.K. (Banerjee) and Chuni. He had a huge body and an equally big heart. He was a good friend of mine. It’s sad news for me. I’ll miss him and I’m sure Indian football will miss him. He’ll always be remembered as a great servant of Indian football.