Indian football has been referred to as a sleeping giant by former Asian Football Confederation secretary Peter Velappen. And FIFA president Sepp Blatter has some special plans for the world's second most populous country.

The recently remodelled professional league in India, the I -League, was launched in November last year and is a major step forward, but more needs to be done. India has been lagging behind in the FIFA football ranking at 157.

Yet the passion for the game and the unflinching interest in it has not diminished in some pockets of India, in spite of the overwhelming craze for cricket. Goa, the former Portuguese colony, is one such place where they say fish, feni (local country liquor) and football are a craze among the locals, although not necessarily in that order

'The Goans love their football and put in their work and money to see the football dreams of their fellow Indians flourish on the football field'


The Goans love their football and put in their work and money to see the football dreams of their fellow Indians flourish on the football field. Instead of waiting for AFC and FIFA to whip up the football passions and awake the sleeping giant, it is the small-time football fans like Douglas Fernandes who are helping their countrymen to make a name for themselves in the game.

Douglas, a Portuguese citizen of Goan origin, has made it possible for Joshuah Vaz, a 19-year-old Goan youngster, to train for a five-year period in Portugal with Vitoria Sport Clube in Guimaraes, close to Oporto. The young lad will be staying at the club for five months until the end of the season in Portugal.

Joshuah is not new to Portugal, having earlier being part of the Indian Under-17 team which toured Portugal for 22 days. At that time the Indian team were based in Rio Maior, 110 kms north of Lisbon. As for the language barrier, he has taken Portuguese as his second language in his secondary studies. “Hopefully my language will improve while interacting with my Portuguese club colleagues,” he says.

But the youngster who has represented his school in athletics, table tennis and swimming, wants to improve his football. His idol is Brazil’s Ronaldinho - “everybody knows he is the best,” he says. But he also wants to meet Cristiano Ronaldo.

Joshuah first shot into the limelight playing for his school team and so far has represented the state team in the Under-16 and Under-19 championships. In October 2005 he was the captain of the state Under-16 team that won the Mir Iqbal west zone trophy. And in December 2006 he was part of the team that came third in the BC Roy trophy for under-19s.

“I am very proud to be the first Indian to have found a club in Portugal to practise, and hopefully many others will follow. My stay will pave the way for the others,” he says. Hopefully Joshuah’s journey to Portugal has opened up new avenues for other Indian youngsters to chase their football dream.