Nitesh Aswani captains Kenkre Football Club (KFC) in the I-League Second Division. He is familiar with looking at the big picture. As a schoolboy with Our Lady of Perpetual Succour (OLPS) in Chembur, he accepted multiple responsibilities as coordinator, coach and captain just to be able to field a side in Mumbai’s inter-school football competitions. Now, as a 19-year-old tasked with leading a men’s squad in the national football league, he is using ability as a stopper back to earn the respect of his teammates. Ivory Coast’s Yao Bernard is a foreign pro this season. Last year, some seniors refused to accept him as captain.
Dempo SC is the best known among five sides in Group B. Mumbai is represented by KFC and PIFA Sports and each side will play home and away. Chandigarh’s Minerva Academy FC and Lonestar Kashmir FC are the other sides.
The five teams in Group A include the famous Mohammedan Sporting Club from Kolkata. Nitesh was skipper in KFC’s opening I-League II Div goalless draw against the visitors from Kashmir at the Cooperage. The youngster is excited about the future. “Dempo is in our group. Playing matches against a top side like theirs will motivate us to do our best.”
Coming of age
Kerala Blasters FC forward Milagres Gonsalves is an Indian Super League (Season 1) performer who plays for Dempo. For a Mumbai kid playing inter-schools for OLPS without a coach and or a ground, Nitesh has come a long way to figure in the I-League’s second rung.
In the second division of I-League, performers are offered trials with I-League Elite Division squads like Mumbai FC. “I was in the tenth standard when I ended up doing many roles just to be able to play Mumbai inter-schools. It was tough, but I learnt to take decisions.”
He elaborated: “OLPS did not have a team, no coach, no ground. I assembled players, booked a ground for training, conducted practice sessions, wrote down the team sheet and also played stopper back because no one was prepared to play in such a difficult position.”
Kenkre FC drafted him into the age group team and the defender toured Sweden, Denmark and Finland for the Gothia Cup. “It is an age group meet between club sides from different nations. In Finland, we qualified for the playoff stage in 2012.”
After returning home, Nitesh had to give up football. “Things did not take off the way I expected. My family told me to do something useful for a career instead of wasting time in football. So, I decided to study,” said Nitesh, who is pursuing a BMS degree at National College. “Minters SC offered me a chance to play in Mumbai First Division league, then Kenkre agreed to take me back,” said Nitesh. “From inter-school to I-League at 17, I am lucky.”
Nitesh started off playing club cricket as an all-rounder, enjoyed family support but turned his back on the game following differences with a local coach. “I still have my helmet and cricket equipment, but don’t feel like playing. My family didn’t mind me playing cricket, but football, in their opinion, was a waste of time.” Now he and his dad watch the ISL on television. “There is hope for Mumbai youngsters wanting to make football as a career. The ISL is slowly changing parents’ perceptions. They feel there is money in football, though it is early days.”
The ISL has helped Mumbai teenagers, including I-League players from Mumbai FC like Ashutosh Mehta (Mumbai City FC), earn quick fame. Nitesh’s goal is to play for India. “People advised me to change my position from stopper back because I am considered not tall enough for a central defender. I tell them to look at Barcelona players. Fitness, positioning and ball-skills got them success; all of them are not tall. Nor do they have the physique for international football,” said the Mumbai City FC fan, who credits coach Floyd Pinto for guiding him.
