5 former Indian players we would love to see in the ISL

Mumbai Art Culture And Entertainment : News Photo
Bhutia is widely considered to be India’s greatest ever footballer

#2 IM Vijayan

IM Vijayan with Diego Maradona

There are many who fervently believe IM Vijayan was born into the wrong footballing generation. Several sigh audibly and nod their heads sadly when talking about what Vijayan could have been had he been an active player now.

This is not without reason. Simply put, he is one of the deadliest strikers the country has ever produced. Born into poverty, he initially had to sell soda bottles to earn a living. He understood very early in life that the beautiful game was his only shot at redemption. It gave him a burning passion for the game, a fiery will to succeed.

His rise as a footballing superstar was quite quick. But unfortunately, with not much money in the game then, he let his focus wander and appeared in several ‘Sevens Tournaments,’ at great cost to his health.

Had he been playing now, under proper guidance and a stricter training regimen, there is no saying how much higher he could have gone.

After scoring 40 goals from 79 matches, including the third-fastest goal in the world, he called time on his career in 2003. His age, 51, rules him out of a return to the ISL. But what if he could and had? Some things are never meant to be. Sigh!

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Edited by Staff Editor