Arnab Mondal
Interview ~ Zeenews India 2015/01/11
Languishing at the 171st spot (out of 209) in global rankings,
Indian football is at its lowest ebb and the All India Football
Federation (AIFF) launched the ISL with the objective of ushering
in a fresh wave of interest in the world's most popular sport in a
country dominated by cricket.
The efforts witnessed a marked improvement in off-field
infrastructure and Mandal lauded the professionalism that
characterised the ISL, which he said was earlier lacking in Indian
football.
Arnab Mondal: We won't get the same facilities in the I-league.
If you have to really change something then change the whole of
it. Yes, professionalism has helped as it was a well managed
league. We had to play matches at short intervals. Yet we never
quite faced much inconvenience.
The 25-year-old also highlighted the need for a "grassroot development programme" and infrastructure uplift of the local clubs.
Arnab Mondal: We have to improve the standards of the local clubs, start grassroot programmes and develop the infrastructure; ISL is only there for three months in a year. For the bulk of the year, we have to remain content with facilities which are not as good.
Mandal said his own performance improved markedly in the superior infrastructure. He was one of the few Indian stars of the tournament and led ATK's triumphant march. The talented defender first came into prominence in city club United SC and since then his stock has risen steadily as he made international appearances and become East Bengal's backline mainstay.
He forged a formidable central defensive pairing with Spaniard Josemi for ATK and was praised by coach Antonio Habas and marquee skipper Luis Garcia.
Arnab Mondal: ISL has given birth to a new Indian football. Mentally and physically it was a challenge for the players to play against their foreign counterparts. Greats of the game are coming to India to play for Indian clubs. No one could've thought about this before. It is overall a platform for players like us, a platform that is recognised at the world stage
Mandal's exploits earned the praise of team co-owner and former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly, who claimed that reigning La Liga champions and ATK co-owners, Atletico de Madrid, wanted the 1.79 m tall player in their ranks for the next season. Though Mandal expressed happiness at this, he said he was completely unaware of the development.
Arnab Mondal: I have not had any talks with Atletico Madrid. I know nothing about this.
The lanky footballer, who came up through Mohammedan SC's youth setup, also said that he benefited a lot from the ISL, getting the opportunity to work with "inspirational" Garcia and "perfect defensive leader" Josemi.
Arnab Mondal: We always looked up to him (Garcia) for inspiration. He encouraged the whole team every time we were down and out; he knew what to tell when, to boost our morale.
Arnab Mondal: Josemi taught me a lot of things. Whenever he told me anything, I always listened very carefully, so that I could implement the skills on the ground when needed.
Coach Habas' aggressive strategies and animated character enthused energy in the team, he said.
Arnab Mondal: Habas was very aggressive. He always put the team ahead of any player; at team meetings he was a very animated character who would make sure we understood all his strategies.
After a bright start, ATK were in the news for the wrong reasons as reports of tantrums from Ethiopian striker Fikru Teferra and Garcia emerged. Mandal admitted those disruptive actions "unsettled" the players but credited the team management for handling the situation well.
Arnab Mondal: Yes we were a bit unsettled when such incidents took place, but we were mentally charged up by the coach to just focus on the game and play to our potential.
