This story is from December 22, 2015

ISL a good show, but India need longer league to grow: Zico

Brazilian star Zico said, if India is to improve, she must follow the AFC rule and pointed out at the progress of Asian nations like Japan, Uzbekistan, UAE and Qatar, adding that we would otherwise end up losing to teams like Guam.
ISL a good show, but India need longer league to grow: Zico
Brazilian star Zico said, if India is to improve, she must follow the AFC rule and pointed out at the progress of Asian nations like Japan, Uzbekistan, UAE and Qatar, adding that we would otherwise end up losing to teams like Guam.
Key Highlights
• One was left wondering whether Zico's innings at FC Goa had come to a close.

• Zico said, if India is to improve, she must follow the AFC rule.

• "If India is to grow as a footballing nation, they need a longer league," Zico said.
PANAJI: Pain was writ large on his face. Emotion and nostalgia flowed from his lips as Arthur Antunes Coimbra, better known as Zico, spoke to the media on FC Goa's ISL season 2. Missing was the little swagger and heart-warming smile that was replaced by a drained-out, disappointed look, shoulders drooping as he poured his heart out. There was no remorse, just pain.

The Brazilian talked about his journey from start to the end, thanking the players, his coaching staff, the media and the club owners. Just as he wound up his part of the media conference called by the club owners of FC Goa at a city hotel in Panjim, one was left wondering whether his innings at the club had come to a close. It felt as if his love affair with Goa had met a premature end. Was it the defeat, the unsporting boycott by the club of the award ceremony? Was it the standard of refereeing?
"Job accomplished. Reaching the final was our goal. We worked hard, from pre-season training to regular training. And when at the end of the day, you get bad decisions by incompetent officials, it breaks your heart, especially when the occurrence is once too often, that too in crucial matches, it hurts.
"I made a single comment on the standard of refereeing in the match against Atletico de Kolkata in the hope that my opinion would help them improve but the ISL organisers did nothing. Instead, they reprimanded my club and warned me," said Zico.
"This version of the ISL is a good show, nothing more. If India is to grow as a footballing nation, they need a longer league, say eight months, with more Indian players and less foreigners. The talent is there," he said.
Zico said, if India is to improve, she must follow the AFC rule and pointed out at the progress of Asian nations like Japan, Uzbekistan, UAE and Qatar, adding that we would otherwise end up losing to teams like Guam.
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