Messi is the best player in the last decade: Pele

The audience started cheering him and roared with laughter.

Brazilian footballer Pele showing his skill to the students during an interaction with them in Kolkata on Monday evening.

Pele will also be a part of lunch programme tomorrow to motivate the ATK camp, hours before their kick-off. So even though we have the best players we don’t gel as a side. He, like Pele, was never booked in his entire professional career.

“No one is allowed to meet him today”.

Asked whether the world would see another Pele, the legend quipped, “My mother and father have closed the machine”. They can then come here and share their experiences. Indian players need more exposure to global football, he felt. And football is a team game.

“You should have football in universities, schools and colleges”. He was also keen to stress that both players play the game in very different ways. That time the responsibility was on the former players and they took it up. Ronaldo plays in the striking zone and tries to score while Messi plays deeper in the midfield and has a different style.

The septuagenarian global football icon, who would be celebrating his birthday at the Buckingham Palace with Queen Elizabeth on October 23, was asked whether he will accept a 75-pound cake from the best cakemaker in London or a peck on the cheek from the monarch. Its current Federation Internationale de Football Association ranking of 167 in the world (and 133 its average position over the last 22 years) is clearly the nadir as evidenced by India’s showing in its last four World Cup qualifiers in which it has lost to teams like Guam and Turkmenistan.

Members of the Mohun Bagan team who played in the 1977 match would be present and get a chance to interact with the former Brazilian superstar. Apart from them, I think Neymar has the potential to become the best.

The night was young when Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and cricket star Sourav Ganguly went on stage. However, eventually the Argentine’s mention made an appearance at a function in the Netaji Indoor Stadium, when the legend was re-introduced to Mohun Bagan players. “The most important thing in life is health”. “I’m sure Beto would have been equally successful had he played in this era”.

Q. Any final words for the Indian football fans?

“Thank you God for this day, for giving me this moment”.