Nineteen-year old Daniel Lalhlimpuia is not easily carried away. Given his achievements over the past year and his career path so far, it would have been easy for the footballer from Mizoram to have been resting on his laurels.
His team Bengaluru FC are preparing to host defending champions and Malaysian side Johor Darul Ta’zim in the second leg of the 2016 AFC Cup semi-final on October 19. The scoreline is delicately poised at 1-1, with Bengaluru currently enjoying the advantage of an away goal. But Daniel, who has just been through a gruelling double session of training when we meet, remains grounded and reminds me of why BFC can’t afford to take their eyes off the ball.
“All of us are highly motivated for the match and we’re looking forward to it. Johor are a strong side because they were the champions in the last tournament. You won’t find any team easy in the semi-final,” he told Scroll.in about the biggest match in Bengaluru’s history.
Annus mirabilis
It's definitely been a miraculous year for the young man from Serchhip, a Central Mizoram town 112 km away from the state capital. Daniel has gone from scoring against Bengaluru FC for the India Under-19s in a friendly to signing for the JSW-backed club, becoming part of the I-League champions of 2016 in the process.
And that’s not all. Daniel, who was the captain of the India Under-19 team, went on to make his debut for the senior national team, replacing Bengaluru skipper Sunil Chhetri in the 78th minute of India’s 4-1 victory over Puerto Rico in a friendly held at Mumbai in September. Said Daniel, “The highest thing you can achieve is to play for your country at senior level. If someone asks me, what is your aim, I will say that I hope to represent the country. My substitution is special as I was subbed in for Sunil.”
Daniel, Malsawmzuala and Nishu Kumar were all at AIFF’s Elite Academy when they were picked up by Bengaluru. Daniel spoke about watching the club play when he was at the academy, “It’s amazing that we won the league six months after signing on. I hope to win more. All the players here at BFC, the players I play with right now, are the players I looked upto, the players at the top of Indian football when we were in the U-19s last year.”
The super sub strikes
Daniel earned himself the tag of super sub this season when, after coming on as a substitute, he bagged the winner in a 1-0 victory over Mumbai FC and earned his club a crucial three points in the title race. It was also Bengaluru’s first ever victory over the Mumbai club, as the forward scored with 9 minutes remaining on the clock.
The Mizo striker was to score another very important goal for the Steelmen as they went on to defeat Kitchee SC 3-2 away in Hong Kong. It was Daniel who grabbed the winner to send BFC through to the quarter-final of the 2016 AFC Cup.
Standing at slightly over six feet, Daniel is well-built and at an optimum height for a striker. As seen in the goal over Kitchee, he has a good sense of positioning and has the pace to burn. He has a keen eye for goal as well – his 19 goals in the Administrator's Challenge Cup 2012, which is an all-time record for the tournament, is testament to that.
A Chhetri fan
Daniel reserves special praise for the BFC skipper. “I used to see him playing when I was in the academy. He has something different as compared to other Indian players. He has different abilities.” Chhetri has spoken highly of Daniel in the past. “He is a hard worker and a very talented striker. In time, he will surely be a name that will pop around a lot.”
The young forward’s I-league win has also changed the perception back home, “Everyone in the village knows that I’ve won something. Everyone wants to invite me to some type of school, some motivation speech, so that I can share my experience, talk to them.”
Yet, before he was scouted by the Chandigarh Football Academy (CFA) in 2007, Daniel had never thought of football as a career. “We just used to play at home, for fun. I was not all that serious, when I joined the CFA. I made my mind afterwards.”
Bengaluru former head coach Ashley Westwood and the current incumbent Albert Roca have both had a profound effect on the youngster. About Roca’s philosophy, Daniel said, “Roca is a great manager. The philosophy of the coach is different (from Westwood’s). We are keeping the ball more, like the coach wants right now.”
Whom Daniel wants to be like (it's not Messi)
For Daniel, starting appearances have been hard to come by in his first year of professional football but the 19-year old’s focus does not waver when questioned about plans to break into the Indian senior team and BFC’s starting line-up next season. “I think I have to work harder than before to get into the team. Right now, all I want is, whether I play or not, that the best team plays and we win. I don’t want think of anything further than this.”
What about Bengaluru’s match against Johor, and, specifically, the opposition’s Argentine strikers Jorge Pereyra Diaz and Juan Lucero? “The two strikers were the main players for Johor. They’re the ones who scored the crucial goals. Their suspension is going to be an advantage for us.”
Daniel, who was part of the Indian team which finished at the bottom in their group at the 2012 AFC U-16 championships in Tehran, has also watched the current crop of India U-16s compete at the 2016 edition of the tournament held in Goa.
He urged patience with the team. “When I saw their games against the top countries in the AFC, they were really improving. We were not like them when we were at the U-17 level. They are technically better than we were. They will go further at next year’s World Cup. They’re more experienced than us, they’ve been to Germany and played against Schalke.”
For inspiration, Daniel turns to a Brazilian whom he enjoyed watching at the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. “My role model is Kaka. There is a lot to admire about him – the way he dribbles, the way he takes on the players, his personality on the field. He never shows his frustration to the players. He was a Devout Catholic as well.” Daniel is highly religious himself.
The progress of Mizo football excites the youngster. “Aizawl FC have qualified from the second division. I’m really happy for them that they’re going to play in the I-League. The love of football in Mizoram, I have not seen in other parts of the country. When there are I-League matches in Mizoram, everyone wants to watch the match. Hopefully, we’ll see more Mizo players in the Indian team.”
Is there anything in Daniel's life right now besides football? “If I had to name one hobby, I enjoy playing table tennis with the captain (Chhetri). I lose almost every time. He is very good.”