ISL: Ivory Coast's Didier Zokora aims to lead by example

Having played in three World Cups and represented various top clubs in the world, Ivory Coast's most-capped player Didier Zokora believes he can contribute to Indian football.

The 34-year-old former Tottenham Hotspurs' player, who plays for FC Pune City in the Indian Super League (ISL), wants to help raise the standards of Indian football by helping out the domestic players. "I have played in England, Spain and Turkey and now I want to give my experience to every domestic player in the ISL. I love football, it's my passion. I want to give my best at every game and want to be an example for players in India," he told Mail Today.

Zokora is impressed with hard work Indian players put in. He was all praise for his teammates Lenny Rodrigues, Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Jackichand Singh who are also part of the Indian team. He said that there were other Indian players in the ISL he was impressed with, but couldn't recollect their names.

He said that the quality of football in ISL is good and the games are highly competitive."The second season has been very interesting. There are a lot of quality players in the tournament and playing in the league is not easy. If you see the table every team is very close," said Zokora.

Zokora said the reason why Ivory Coast is able to produce quality footballers despite poor socio-economic conditions, is the undying passion for the Beautiful Game. "Indian people don't know much about football because cricket is the big game here, but I hope ISL makes football big in India. Football in my country is a religion. If you come there you will see all little kids playing football on streets with no shoes and proper clothing.

Zokora, one of nine siblings who come from humble background, said he learnt the basics of football on streets. "I think the best place to learn football is a street. I was 'born and brought up' on streets. That is where I began my football," he added.

Zokora played as a midfielder in Pune's all 10 games this season. He said that he didn't have anything left to prove, but wanted to put his best foot forward in every game. "I need to be an example for others in the tournament. I work really hard and when a World Cup player comes to India, people have very high expectations from him," he said.

Talking about football back in his country, Zokora said that the national team's progress had been quite heartening not only for him, but also for entire nation. "In the last decade our country has gone through a lot of turmoil but people find joy in football.

"The game has changed a lot of lives in our country," said Zokora, who played a vital role in Ivory Coast's first-ever World Cup qualification in 2006.