BITING FOOTBALLER LUIS SOARES.

Football is a very physical game when while playing you are bound to lose your temper due to rough or tough physical contacts and  tackles of your opponents.  Because of rough tackle by his Italian opponent Mauro Tassoti in 1994 World Cup, a Spanish footballer broke his Nose and FIFA slapped 8 match suspension on the Italian. Earlier in this current World Cup, Cameroon midfielder Song for a similar foul on Croatian player was suspended for three games. And now comes the Biting of the shoulder of Italian defender Chiellini by the habitual biter, the Uruguyan forward Luis Soares. Earlier in 2010 when Soares was playing in Dutch League he was castigated with suspension of 7 games and then again last year when he was playing for Liverpool for similar foul play he was suspended for 10 games which was later on reduced to 3 games on his personal plea.

Traditionally South American soccer is very tough and sometimes rough too where Argentina, Uruguay and Paruguay are leading offenders.  For this reason in 1966 World Cup, Sir Alf Ramsey the Manager of English team dubbed Argentinians as beasts.

Now in this World Cup,  Soares after committing the un-footballing foul against Italian defender, FIFA punished him with a suspension of 9 matches plus 4 months of no soccer activity.  It was just the right sentence imposed by FIFA on Luis Soares though he merits harsher punishment because he is endangering the life of his opponents.  Such players are not meant to play soccer which is governed by decent rules which every player must abide.

After his second suspension under Liverpool he vowed in front of both his kids that he will desist from repeating biting incidents but again he was tempted because it is  in his blood to act thus.  According to psychologists who studied his behavior they said his actions reflect his very poor upbringing like a vagabond just as Maradona was brought up in the ghettoes  in Argentina without proper parental care and basic home discipline.  Because of this Maradona got afflicted with vices and destroyed his lucrative life.

Coming back to Luis Soares, he was born in a big  family of 7 children in a poverty stricken atmosphere where his poor parents could not control him and thus he was brought up and developed like a ruffian without basic discipline.

In his absence, yesterday Uruguay lost to Columbia though they said they will request FIFA to allow him to play for this match. In 1962 World Cup, at the crucial stage for the final, Brazil had to play this important match without their star forward Garincha who was slapped with one match suspension.  Since Pele was on injured list, not only Brazilian Football Federation appealed to FIFA to lift this suspension but even the head of the country the President of Brazil did so and surprisingly FIFA relented and allowed Garincha to play in the final and Brazil came out victorious.

 

A.    Veronica Fernandes,
Candolim,
Goa.

 

WORLD CUP 2014 - PHASE - I.

The first phase of the World Cup has just been completed in one fortnight in which 16 teams have been eliminated and the remaining 16 teams will be vying for the supremacy of this mighty soccer tournament. Never in the past this tournament received such a mighty attention from all segments of the society all over the world. During the last fortnight people around were talking of and even inhaling World Cup only and because of the craze to watch the matches even the late night matches soccer crazy people kept aside their routine obligations.  This was visible in the absenteeism from work, from classes, from Churches early in the mornings and so on and on. In Mapusa  Market one could easily notice less number of shoppers and customers in the mornings following the important encounters on the previous late nights.

 

 

Though our Indian national team was not in the list of 32 and possibly it will never be till the end of this century unless there is a total change in our soccer administration from top to bottom yet Indians supported their different teams as per their likes thereby making this tourney more important than the Cricket. Among Goans Ronaldo’s Portugal receved major attention not because of any other reason than the magical display of Ronaldo of which type no other footballer displays, not even mighty Messi. One Ronaldo has attracted the goodwill and love for Portugal just as one Eusebio did earlier. One Messi attracted the love of millions towards Argentina just as Maradona did earlier. 

 

  

It s not only the elegance of the team but more than that the brilliance of the individual player of the team that gains goodwill and support not only for the national team concerned but also for the concerned nation and its national products as well.  Because of one Pele the country Brazil and its citizens gained lot of goodwill from all around the globe making Brazil as the darling of the world. Not only this, because of the attraction of Pele, following their retaining of Jules Rimet World Cup permanently in 1970, the Brazilian products started selling like hot cakes in many parts of the world.  And as a matter of interest, in the Gulf the sale of Brazilian VW Beetle Cars increased in leaps and bounds. 

 

 

Somebody recently said that we in Goa should not sing hosannas in support of Portugal. I question him why and who are you to dictate terms to us? I will shower praises even on the enemy team if it deserves praises as I did once in Kuwait by writing in the local Daily there in praise of Pakistani Cricket team, of course deservingly and to the chagrin of some of the super patriotic Bharatis who even passed nasty comments against me calling me a pro-Pakistani.

 

 

To appreciate and judge rightly one must possess right frame of mind and judicious observation. Though Portugal ruled 451 years over Goa that does not mean we should treat Portugal as our enemy. Thru their lengthy rule over us we also gained lot of good from them. That they were evicted from Goa in 1961 by force is a different matter otherwise in 1974 Portugal would automatically leave from Goa on its own free will as it did from their African colonies after the fall of Salazarist regime in Portugal headed by Marcelo Caetano. We should consider Salazar and Goan Brahmin Bhattkars as our worst enemies who kept us in Goa in subjucation.

 

Good luck to all the remaining 16 teams.

 

 

     A. Veronica Fernandes,

Candolim,

Goa.

 

" TE SANDDLEAT ".

 

Since I returned from Kuwait for good, it is 6 months now.  During this period with a Lantern in my hand I was moving all around Goa during day time when the Sun was directly overhead, in search of top ex Kuwait Goans who were boasting of their top money power, top job power, top business power, top social power and everything top. In reality they were top in Kuwait and because they were top they were acting like Goan Maharajas in Kuwait among the idiot Goans since they were like one eyed Goans among the blind Goans. Overwhelming majority of Goans in Kuwait is like one eyed men though they may think otherwise. Good that in Kuwait in reality the holders of Indian Passports are treated with disdain and without much respect otherwise the so called top Goans in Kuwait would even wear the robes of Sheikhs and act as feudal lords.

Where are these so called top Kuwait Goans gone now?  Are they gone underground for fear of reprisal by their opponents whom they treated badly in Kuwait?  Are they feeling shy now in Goa for being non entities and as such they are hiding from public view being unable to accept the status of non entities? Where are all those Goans who were holding executive posts in their boastful social and sporting associations gone now in Goa?  Why their show making photos are not appearing in the local dailies as they were appearing in Kuwait? Why they cannot involve in the activities in Goa as they used to do in Kuwait?

Where are those so called top Goans holding top positions in Kuwait and also boasting of same as if they reached to the Moon on top?  I don’t encounter any of them anywhere in Goa in public forums where I am involving since I returned for good.  By chance recently I met one of such cheap characters in Panjim and after exchanging some pleasantries he invited me to his place by describing his location with pompous address saying: “Next to the Church there is my big posh Bungalow of 3 Storey and on the ground floor you will see parked there my Red Mercedes Car”.  Then he went further saying: “You come on Sunday for a Lunch with your wife because we prepare Buffet on every Sunday since I have a special cook whom I pay handsomely every month”.   

This man is a son of a Pedru inheriting all the cheap qualities of his father craving for importance in life and that it is so one can know from the way he gave me his invitation. In fact it was not an invitation but the show of his wealth which he acquired from Kuwait not only thru fair means but also thru unfair means. When he was in Kuwait he was boasting of his Supervisory job which used to fetch him handsome salary though it was the job meant for an idiot in Goa.  In Kuwait to get a handsome job you need to have luck or influence or “chamchagiri” and not necessarily educational and professional background.

Because of being unwanted and unrecognized in Goa many of our ex-Kuwait Goans are undergoing mental crisis, they feel hurt to accept the fact that nobody cares them in Goa inspite of having so much of money.  But they fail to realise that the money they have is big for them only because when they went to Kuwait they were suffering from abject poverty.  During those days their poverty was such that they could not taste Chicken, Pomfrets and Lobsters which finally they tasted only in Kuwait.  Once they reached Kuwait and made some money they thought the world should come to their knees but the real reality in life they realized only when they came back to Goa for good where nobody cares for them. Some of them to get cheap prominence have joined the Church groups otherwise they are not interested in God.

For this reason, many of them are hiding from advanced society where money power is not counted but only the intellectual power. The cheap prominence our Goan stalwarts were getting in Kuwait must be treated as a dream gone forever especially for those who were boasting of their presidency of Goan associations and managerial and supervisory positions. The importance they got in life in Kuwait they will never get again in Goa and precisely because of this they are lost in Goa.  Yes, “Te Sanddleat”.

 

A.    Veronica Fernandes,
Candolim,
Goa.