I wish the ISL started a few years earlier – Jose Ramirez Barreto

Jose Ramirez Barreto

The I-League second division decider between Shillong’s Royal Wahingdoh and Kolkata’s Bhowanipore back in April marked the end of a glittering playing career of Jose Ramirez Barreto. The Brazilian had decided to retire irrespective of the result and it wasn’t a happy ending as his Bhowanipore side lost 3-2 to miss out on I-League promotion.

But that final failure cannot take away any gloss from Barreto’s remarkable achievements in Indian football. He became a legend at Mohun Bagan winning almost every major domestic trophy in 11 seasons there spread over two spells. There was also a one-year spell at Mumbai’s Mahindra United where he won the league cup and double.

In the 21st century, there is hard to find a more decorated and popular player in Indian club football than Barreto.

Three months after that farewell game Barreto has been handed a new and exciting challenge as he has been appointed as one of the assistant coaches of the Indian Super League’s Kolkata franchise Atletico de Kolkata.

Barreto will be providing the local insight to the franchise’s Spanish head coach Antonio Lopez Habas and the legendary forward can’t wait to start this new chapter of his life.

“I won’t be playing but it would still be a football-related job. It is going to be very exciting because the ISL has all the ingredients to take Indian football to the next level. The involvement of a big football brand like Atletico Madrid is immense for the league because they are so professional, giving importance to every minute detail.

“It is an honour to be part of Atletico de Kolkata and also puts responsibility on my shoulders but hopefully my experience in Indian football will be useful,” Barreto told Sportskeeda during an exclusive chat on the sidelines of a promotional event of Spice Hotspot, India’s leading mobility retail brand of Spice Group, on Wednesday at a hotel in Kolkata.

There have been debates on various social media platforms about the potential impact of the ISL on Indian football. Barreto is convinced that the new league will provide the sport in the country a new lease of life and expects better turnouts in the venues compared to the I-League.

“Yes I fully expect the ISL to be successful. It will provide the big push that Indian football needed because big clubs, corporates are all coming together and there will also be a dedicated grassroots development program. I believe the response from the people will also be greater than it is for the I-League. I just wish this started a few years earlier then I might have been able to play in it,” he opined.

Barreto inevitably also had to give his reaction on his home country’s traumatic 1-7 defeat against Germany in the 2014 FIFA World Cup semi-final. The 37-year-old was critical of the whole team including coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, under whom he played in the youth team of Gremio, but believes Brazil will soon bounce back from this disappointment.

“It was embarrassing and the entire squad should be held responsible. They didn’t play the way it was necessary and the coach also got his tactics wrong. But one defeat won’t stop the football in Brazil. Of course some changes are needed but not too many. What this loss will do is act as a lesson and perhaps this could be the start of a new beginning in Brazilian football,” Barreto stated before declaring that he wants Argentina to now win the final at the Maracana on Sunday as he wants the most coveted trophy to go to a South American nation.