He Came. He Saw. He Conquered. 70,000 awestruck fans cheered as Diego Armando Maradona laid the Foundation Stones of the Maradona Sports Complex and the Indian Football School at Maheshtala.

Seventy thousand people cheered when Argentina’s national football team coach and former football star Diego Armando Maradona laid the foundation stones of the Maradona Sports Complex and the Indian Football School (IFS) on December 6, 2008.
It was the first time a player of that stature had visited Kolkata since Pele’s visit 31 years ago. And the air was filled with hope and expectation.

Maradona did not kick a single ball, but he inaugurated acres which will give birth to the Maradonas of the future. Maheshtala has already donated players of the calibre of Shankar Lal Banerjee, Manas Bhattacharya and Krishnendu Roy to the nation. And now with the flag flying high the scene is set for players of the future to give India a fighting chance to make it big in world football.

The Indian Football School is being developed by Maheshtala Municipality. The objective of the Football School is to provide national football with a perennial pool of young footballers trained and oriented to international standards. The school, when complete, will give young footballers the best, in terms of modern infrastructure, sports science, world class coaches and training methodology.

Diego Maradona has expressed his willingness to stay involved at every stage, overseeing the layout of the stadium, supervising the training methodologies and visiting the city when required. On Indian Football, Maradona believes that a lot has to be accomplished and the beginning should be made by developing world-class infrastructure. “The boys need a lot of attention and affection to grow. India has a lot to improve. I can recommend coaches to develop coaching standard in India. The inauguration of Indian Football School is a good sign”, he said.

Which is why before he left, he donated Rs. 12,36,000 – the proceeds of his auctioned memorabilia to the Indian Football School. Just a small stepping stone towards a greater one of putting Maheshtala on the world football map.

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