Playing football is part of my daily routine. Five-on-five, three-on-three, and on really good days, seven-on-seven, we can do with any number as long as we play. Since our make-shift ground is actually the park of a nearby apartment-complex, I get to play with a varied age-group. There are kids who’ve just been exposed to the splendour of Messi’s artistry and there are uncles who’ve tried to imitate Carlos Valderrama’s hairstyle at some point in their lives. A week back, I saw a kid wearing a David Silva jersey. I was surprised. Among kids and jerseys, you don’t usually get to see Iniesta and Xavi, leave alone the Silva mould of players who barely hit the spotlight. I don’t blame them. The shiny side of football appeals much more to us when we’re kids. The Ronaldos and the Messis are bound to attract the majority of that age group. So anyway, that kid was a left footed player, and a pretty good one to boot. I decided to have a chat with him after the game. The game wore on and his involvement in the play started decreasing. Fatigue maybe, I guessed. Suddenly he gets the ball on the right wing, glides inside, and comes in front of me. I moved forward and he shifted the ball to his right foot. “Got him”, I thought. The end result was a nutmeg and a finish to the low right corner. I was even more interested to talk to him now. He looked 11-12, and had fantastic ball control for his age. The game ended and I immediately went up to him.
“Good game champ. Silva fan, eh?”
“Yeah, he plays for Man City. He’s better than Aguero.”
I patted his head and walked off with a thought that has been in my head for a while now. The kid was the catalyst for this article, but the thought has been present for a few years. So here goes..
When I spoke about Silva, the first thought in the kid’s head was Manchester City. A vast majority of football fans from his age group know Messi as a Barcelona player and Ronaldo as a Real Madrid player. “Rooney? He plays for Manchester United.”