(From left) Javier Saviola, Juliano Belletti, Edmilson and coach Albert Ferrer in Kolkata Press Club on Thursday
Today at 7.00pm IST, the Barçelona Legends will play the Mohun Bagan AC Legends at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata, India.
Kolkata is going to be witnessed a historical match between FC Barcelona Legends With Asia’s oldest football club MohunBagan Legends today. A team of the former stalwarts of Spanish giant FC Barcelona is in the city to play a friendly match against a combination of former players of Mohan Bagan at the Salt Lake Stadium.
Kickoff at the Salt Lake Stadium (officlally known as Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan, or VYBK) is set for 7.00pm local time. This will be the eighth match for Albert Ferrer as coach of the team of former Barça players.
The match has been organized by the Football Next Foundation, Kolkata.
The concept of Barça Legends is the result of a program by FC Barcelona that aims to showcase the players who have previously played for the Club.
The project aims to contribute to the globalization of the Barça brand and its values through the yesteryear legends, as well as to help the players earn money after retirement. This initiative calls for various matches along with the organization of events held in different parts of the world.
The Barcelona legends side is managed by former Barcelona and Chelsea player Albert Ferrer. Under Ferrer’s tutelage, the side has played seven matches so far across the globe. They have won five, drew one and lost one.
Some of the notable matches they played in the past are against Manchester United legends which they drew 2-2, defeated Olympique de Marseille legends 3-0 and Romania legends 2-0.
Mohun Bagan, on the other hand, have already declared a final list of 30 players. The current squad consists of several current and former India internationals like IM Vijayan, Bhaichung Bhutia, Deepak Mondal, Surkumar Singh, Sunil Chhetri and many others.
Albert ‘Chapi Ferrer’, the manager of the Barça Legends, has released the names of the 18 players who will dress for today’s match Vs Mohun Bagan AC Legends in Kolkata, India.
The former Barça players Robert Fernández, Roger Garcia and Fernando Navarro are the new faces for this Barça Legends match. The rest of the list is as follows: Jesús Angoy, Albert Jorquera, Xavier Sánchez Jara, Frédéric Dehu, Juan Carlos Rodríguez, José Edmílson, Juliano Belletti, Simao Sabrosa, Jari Litmanen, Jofre Mateu, Andoni Goikoetxea, Gabri Garcia, Javier Saviola, Pedro López Martínez Landi, and Damià Abella. Under Ferrer, the Barça Legends have racked up five victories, a draw, and a defeat.
After winning in Mozambique against the Mambas Legends, 1–0, Barça had a 2-2 draw with Manchester United, and a 3-2 win over Hristo Stoichkov & Friends last September. In April, the Legends traveled to Brazil, where they beat the Seleçao Pernambucana, 1-0.
Barça then went to France, where they beat the Le Havre AC Legends, 3-1, and Olympique de Marseille, 3-0. The Barça Legends’ last game was played in Romania, where they topped the Romania Legends, 2-0.
Under Ferrer, the Barça Legends have racked up five victories, a draw, and a defeat. After winning in Mozambique against the Mambas Legends, 1–0, Barça had a 2-2 draw with Manchester United, and a 3-2 win over Hristo Stoichkov & Friends last September. In April, the Legends traveled to Brazil, where they beat the Seleçao Pernambucana, 1-0.
Barçelona is now continuing to schedule matches to help take the Barça brand and its values around the world.
“It has always been my dream to provide our city with the best footballing experience and what can be better than having one of the best football teams in the world play against the National Club of India. Football Next Foundation has been tirelessly working for the development of the sport in the country and would continue to do so,” revealed Mr Kaushik Moulik, Founder, Football Next Foundation, the brain behind bringing FC Barcelona legends to the city.
Mr. Moulik brought the very famous Goalkeeper and the FIFA Golden Ball winner Oliver Kahn to India to play his farewell match against Mohun Bagan on 2008..and the whole Bayern Munich team came to Kolkata at that time with the German Legend.
The Barcelona “legends” participated in a lively interaction with the media on Yesterday at Kolkata Press Club. Sharing the dais with two World Cup winners in Brazilians Edmilson and Juliano Belletti, Javier Saviola, the Argentine forward who has an Olympic gold to his name, spoke about his more famous compatriot Lione Messi.
“We know that Argentina did not perform to the expectations in this World Cup, but we should not haul up Messi for that. I think we should just let him relax. He should be given time to decide whether he wants to turn out for Argentina. Hopefully, he will come back in the national colours, but if it is otherwise, it will be his personal choice,” said Saviola, who won an Olympic gold in 2004.
The 36-year-old Argentine, who shared a World Cup assignment with Messi in 2006, is the part of the Barcelona Legends’ team. He is joined by Edmilson and Belletti, who lifted the World Cup in 2002. There also are the likes of the Portuguese star Simao Sabrosa and Finland’s Jari Litmanen. The Legends are coached by Albert ‘Chapi’ Ferrer, who played under the great Johan Cruyff at Barcelona and won the Champions League in 1992.
Apart from the September 28 game in Kolkata, various institutional and commercial events are planned, as well as an activity with the Barça Academies that the Club has in the Indian cities of Delhi and Mumbai.
The match against the Asia’s oldest football club Kolkata’s very own Mohun Bagan AC Legends in India can be followed on Barça TV, Barça Video and Barça’s official YouTube channel.
A series of activities including a charity auction dinner have been planned prior to the match taking place. The proceeds of the match will be donated to Liver Foundation.
This is definitely a big step forward for Indian football.
> Pratyusha Mukherjee
