Arsene Wenger and Kalyan Chaubey. (AIFF)
Wenger and his workforce from the FIFA Talent Development Scheme are at present on a three-day go to to India in reference to the AIFF-FIFA Academy to be inaugurated in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday
Arsene Wenger, the Chief of Global Football Development, FIFA and a reputed coach, visited the Football House on Monday, November 20, 2023, and had an interplay with the heads of a choose group of soccer academies from throughout the nation.
Wenger additionally had a lengthy and fruitful dialogue with the AIFF President, Kalyan Chaubey and Acting Secretary General Satyanarayan M on establishing the AIFF-FIFA Academy and youth improvement in India.
Wenger and his workforce from the FIFA Talent Development Scheme are at present on a three-day go to to India in reference to the AIFF-FIFA Academy to be inaugurated in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday, November 21, 2023. This is Wenger’s first go to to India.
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Welcoming Wenger, the AIFF President stated, “We are so very honoured and privileged to host and welcome Mr. Wenger. His experience in football needs no introduction or explanation. I can just hope and pray that he continues to be involved with India’s Talent Development Scheme project.”
“We have been discussing this project for nearly three months now. Wenger’s visit to India and his experience and support from FIFA, I am sure will make this project a huge success.”
Commenting on India’s soccer improvement, Chaubey stated, “Let’s not only develop football in India. Rather, make a space on the map of world football, where everyone of us present in this house today can say, yes, on that particular day, November 20, 2023, at the Football House, India, we were there.”
Wenger on his half, stated, “I would say I was always fascinated by India. My target is to improve football in the world. And it is impossible that a country like India, 1.4 billion, is not on the football world map.”
“I believe you have huge assets, and fantastic qualities that make me very optimistic about what you can do here. It is fantastic to have that opportunity. And with my team, we are highly motivated to help this country develop in the game. I’m convinced that it’s possible in the very short term.”
Explaining how a properly-oriented expertise improvement scheme can change the face of the sport in a nation, Wenger stated, “I was in Japan at the start of their football in 1995. In 1998, they were at the World Cup. So that means it is possible. You have to start early.
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“What will football be like in 2030? How can we imagine what our needed quality is in 2030? But what is for sure, is where we start with technique. Football is a technical sport. We have to equip the players from five to 15 with the best possible capacity to be technically at the top. That means, basically, to make it simple, is to make the ball his friend. The rest can be developed later. And this is absolutely vital.
“So, this is where we have to start and that’s where we want to help people to make young players technically perfect. The start of our programme is to identify the talent and then put the best talents together,” he stated.
Speaking on India’s potential aspirations and targets, Wenger stated, “So imagine the potential that is here if we work well. And my main target here is to convince people that there is a gold mine here but at the moment it is not completely explored, exploited and encouraged.”
