Focus on grassroots to develop Indian football: Shabbir Ali

Former football captain Shabbir Ali feels the key to raising the game's profile in India and making the national team an Asian force lies in spreading it to the untapped areas of the country.
Shabbir, who scored 35 international goals in his glittering India career in the late 1970s and and early 1980s, said all the states in the country should have their own leagues. He also spoke about the importance of tournaments like Santosh Trophy as a platform for scouting talent.
"We need to focus on the grassroot development to groom the talent from a young age. All the states should have state leagues. All the clubs should have proper youth development. We also have to give importance to Santosh Trophy because many talented players come up from tournaments like these," Shabbir told PTI.

"The federation (AIFF) is doing its best but I feel they should do more and focus on these critical issues. The government should also play a bigger role in the development of not only football but all other sports," he added.
He said talent scouting from areas outside traditional football bases would be vital for the development of the game in the country.
"I-League is played in a few states. Bengal, Goa and Northeastern states are doing well but what about talented players from other states like Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh? India is a vast country and many talented players can come up from untapped areas if they are given proper facilities and training," he said.

"We have to spread the game in other states and scout the talent from non-traditional football areas and groom them," said Shabbir who coached Bengal to two Santosh Trophy triumphs, besides coaching stints at Mohammedan Sporting and Salgaocar.
The 58-year-old said India should first think of competing at the Asian level before aiming for the World Cup.
"We have to think of Asia first. We played in the Asian Cup in 2011 for the first time after 27 years. That was a good thing," said the prolific former striker.