It wasn’t only a soccer match. It was a love letter to the previous. On Sunday, below the glowing floodlights of the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, El Clasico returned. Not in its blistering, modern-day type although, however by the lens of reminiscence.
Indian soccer followers received a style of the storied rivalry as legends, who as soon as lit up the Santiago Bernabeu and the Camp Nou, battled it out on Indian soil.
The vitality was unmistakable. Tens of 1000’s gathered outdoors the stadium, draped within the crisp whites of Madrid or the blaugrana (pink and blue) stripes of Barcelona. These had been followers who as soon as stayed up by the night time to catch glimpses of Carles Puyol diving into tackles, Luis Figo ghosting previous defenders, or Fernando Morientes slotting it previous goalkeepers with ease.
Lengthy earlier than the gamers stepped onto the sphere, the air was already electrical. Youngsters zipped by the gang of their favourite jerseys, dragging their dad and mom alongside, or possibly it was the opposite approach round. Whereas the youngsters squealed in pleasure on the considered watching their heroes stay, one couldn’t assist however marvel: had been they extra thrilled, or had been their dad and mom reliving the magic of their very own fandom, keenly awaiting the prospect to see the celebs they as soon as worshipped on TV?
Because the gamers took the sphere, the cheers matched the noise of the fireworks. Carles Puyol – that 2010 World Cup-winning captain and the one who led the Tiki-Taka stars – nonetheless radiating defiance; Xavi, the midfield metronome; Rivaldo, the Brazilian who paired up with Ronaldo to win the 2002 World Cup. On the Actual Madrid facet, Luis Figo was able to tear up the flanks, Michael Owen, at all times lurking; and Fernando Morientes, the everyday poacher who would quickly roll again the years with a crisp, composed purpose after receiving an immaculate flick from Figo himself.
On the eve of the match, star Portuguese defender Pepe spoke about how the purpose of the Legends matches wasn’t simply to compete, but additionally to entertain.
“This match, whilst a Legends sport, can do lots for Indian soccer. It may encourage youngsters to play, to dream,” he would say.
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And so they did simply that. Listed here are glimpses of what followers had been handled to: Figo nutmegging Puyol on the sting of the field with the Spanish defender preventing again to have the final chuckle; Michael Owen and Morientes combining up entrance, with the previous even attempting a flip round with finesse to launch his strike companion; Rivaldo unleashing his stellar left-footed shot from outdoors the field and on one other occassion, attempting a backflick to search out his teammate contained in the field; Xavi completely leaving a pink sizzling warmth mark within the midfield, even attempting a fragile again flick from the sting of the field.
The tempo could have been gentler, and the touches and tackles lighter, however the artistry remained.
Madrid’s David Barral confirmed such artistry when he doubled his group’s lead. A slick solo transfer left Puyol and Frank de Boer trailing, sealing the two–0 victory for Actual Madrid Legends. However nobody was conserving rating. Which El Clasico would you see Barcelona followers cheering Madrid objectives, Madrid followers applauding Barca’s flicks?
Even the pitch had its share of tiny, cute invaders—youngsters. Through the match, two younger ladies made a daring (and admittedly cute) try to step onto the sphere. Nevertheless it was after the ultimate whistle that issues received actually entertaining: three boys launched a daring sprint previous safety, dodging and weaving with strikes that may make any rugby coach proud. They had been all finally caught – grinning all the way in which – however one fortunate lad scored massive. His fearless dash caught the attention of Madrid legend Christian Karembeu, who rewarded the trouble with a gesture to recollect: he handed the boy his jersey.
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DY Patil Stadium has seen cricketing milestones and rock live shows however on Sunday night time, soccer followers had been handled to a reminiscence that can stay on; an evening when legends walked and Navi Mumbai walked with them.