From the sounds of machines and tools in a mechanic garage in Kuwait, to the resounding noise of the spectators, in the football stadiums. This is the story of the champion coach, Khalid Jamil, who has given the 33-year-old team, Aizwal Football Club a new name in Indian football when many pundits had written him off.
Like Leicester City who stunned the world by winning the English Premier League, this Mizoram-based team has astonished Indian football. It has been their sheer belief and spirit that has proved that nothing is impossible. Taking charge of the team early this year, Khalid who could not win any title with his team Mumbai FC team as a coach for seven years, has set a new trend in Indian football with Aizwal FC just a step from clinching the Indian Hero I-League title for the first time.
Dream and work hard on the same with dedication and commitment is the mantra of this Mumbai-based coach Khalid.
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“Yes, the credit goes to the players who have shown commendable commitment towards achieving the goal. I would not say we are the champions, until the final whistle is blown in our last match,” said Khalid while talking to Sportskeeda on Monday.
“The players responded well and their amazing appetite for this beautiful game is the secret behind their success,” said the manager – who is soft-spoken off the field, but very vibrant on the field – about their campaign in this year's I-League.
“It is not good to compare this team with Mumbai FC, but I would give credit to this young side. One is sure that football in this part of the country is quite different from what we play in other parts. It is football all the way for these people here, and that is what sets them apart from the others,” said Khalid, for whom it was a late birthday gift (April 21 was his birthday). However, his journey in this beautiful game has come a long way.
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Khalid has been an ardent footballer from his childhood days in Kuwait. A ball boy during the exhibition matches between Kuwait and France wherein he happened to see Michel Platini, Khalid has raised many eyebrows in his mission in Indian football.
“I was a ball boy during their exhibition matches in Kuwait and I happened to see Platini live,” said Khalid who was a under-14 footballer for Kuwait.
Before wearing the Mahindra United colours, Khalid was offered contracts with East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, but he refused as they were sponsored by liquor companies, and started his innings with Mahindra United in the year 1997-98. After not getting a call to play, he moved to Air India, but moved back to Mahindra United and played for them for six years.
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During that period, Khalid won seven caps for India after making his debut in the year 2001. There have been ups and downs during his career as the Mumbai FC coach, one notable one being heated argument with the then Bengaluru FC coach Ashley Westwood, which is better known as ‘bottlegate’, when he was hit by a bottle during a game. However, he laughs over the issue and said, “It happens, there is nothing that will be carried forward.”
“I want to give it back to the game which has given him everything,” says Khalid a father of two sons.
