Kolkata: For fans who have followed Brazil and other football powerhouses at World Cup venues abroad, Saturday’s India-Brazil friendly at Salt Lake Stadium offered a different but equally special experience — watching the Selecao in action much closer home.Among them was Salt Lake resident Raja Banik, who arrived at the stadium in the same Brazil jersey he had worn while travelling to watch World Cup matches in Qatar and the US. Banik, who came with four friends, was supporting India on Saturday despite wearing Brazil colours.“At Qatar, I watched almost all the league matches involving Brazil. I particularly remember Brazil’s matches against Cameroon and Switzerland. The Switzerland game was at Stadium 974, which was built using several containers. It was an awesome experience,” he said.His World Cup journey continued in the US, where he stayed for 14 days with his son Rishiraj, a class 12 student. “I watched the quarter-final and semi-final matches. The quarter-final was Argentina against Switzerland and the semi-final was Spain against France. The experience was unforgettable,” Banik said.While he felt Indian stadiums could not yet match the facilities abroad, he was impressed by Saturday’s arrangements. “Stadiums abroad cannot be compared with the ones in India, but Saturday’s match was extremely well organised and we had a great time,” he said.For Uttam Saha of Gangulybagan, the occasion carried a different twist. An Argentina fan who had travelled to Qatar to watch several matches involving his favourite team, Saha turned up at Salt Lake with around 50 others, carrying national flags and wearing Argentina’s familiar blue-and-white colours — but cheering for India this time.“I have watched a number of World Cup matches abroad. It is difficult to compare the facilities and ambience of football matches in Kolkata with places where football is a prime sport. But on Saturday, the arrangements were top notch,” Saha said.Even though the stadium was not packed, he said the fans who turned up thoroughly enjoyed watching India take on the five-time world champions. “More matches like these should happen in the near future. That would be great for Indian football,” he said.For 50-year-old Smarajit Banerjee, a die-hard Mohun Bagan supporter and Brazil fan, Saturday was a chance to make up for a disappointing World Cup campaign. Banerjee had travelled to the US with friend Chiranjib Basu and watched several group-stage matches, including two involving Brazil, before returning to Kolkata on June 28.“I was heartbroken after Brazil’s exit. But on Saturday, I had a chance to see Brazil in action again, this time near my home,” he said. Banerjee believes the bigger challenge for Indian football lies beyond a single high-profile friendly match.“We happily watch the FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro, Copa America and European club football. We know the statistics, transfers and performances of foreign players. But how many of us regularly follow Indian football? That is where the real change needs to begin,” he said.Advocate Somshankar Dutta of Alipurduar, who attended the match with his daughter Aishika, a class 11 student, said, “The miracle Indian football needs is not simply beating Brazil one evening. It is millions of Indians saying, ‘India is playing tonight. I have to watch.’ That is when we will know that something has truly changed. India does not simply need another great footballer. India needs a football culture,” he said.
