Football legend Carles Puyol is on his first visit to India to promote the Under-17 World Cup, India’s first ever FIFA event, to be held in October.
The World Cup winner launched ticket sales for the Under-17 World Cup in New Delhi and enthralled fans in a friendly game with children at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Monday.
Puyol, 39, handed over the first ceremonial ticket to Gouri Bhaduri, granddaughter-in-law of Shibdas Bhaduri – captain of the historic Indian club Mohun Bagan who defeated an English side for the first time in 1911. Ticket sales went live at exactly 19:11 Indian time on Tuesday, paying tribute to the year in which Indian football made history.
Puyol said he looked forward to returning to India for the U-17 tournament, which was founded in 1985 and produced many footballing greats including Neymar and Ronaldinho.
“I am extremely happy to be here in India. It’s my first time here. It’s a great occasion,” said Puyol, who was part of the World Cup-winning Spanish side in 2010.
As part of the promotions, the Spanish legend did a Facebook Live Q&A session on Tuesday and spoke about various topics, from his Barcelona team mate Lionel Messi to the iconic 2006 Champions League final.
Talking about contemporary football’s debate on Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo, Puyol firmly sided with Messi.
“For me the best is Messi, I have played with him. Messi has given me a lot of joy. I would say both are great players, their competition is very intense and it helps them to keep getting better, and not get complacent.
“Cristiano is one of the greatest in football history, but Messi is better,” the 39-year-old said.
Puyol also praised Messi’s consistency and said that he hopes he wins a major trophy Argentina in the near future, something that has eluded him for long.
“The one thing about Messi is that he keeps improving and he has been consistent for 10 years, he keeps getting better and that’s because he has the drive, the passion. I hope Messi wins something with his national team and not only with his club, then he would have won everything with everyone,” he said.
Messi has led Argentina to a major final in each of the last three summers but remains without a title after falling short at the 2014 World Cup, 2015 Copa America and 2016 Copa America Centenario.
Asked about India hosting its first FIFA event, Puyol said it will definitely generate a lot of interest in the country.
“It’s a great step forward hosting the U-17 World Cup. This is where the future stars start their development process. India is like a young football country in that sense but it has been going growing rapidly. Indian fans are passionate and I am sure that the World Cup will generate something much, much bigger in India and then more people will get introduced to the game.”
When asked how India could aspire to improve its standing in international football, Puyol said it’s important that kids get introduced to the sport at a very young age and enjoy the practice sessions.
“The important thing is to start early and practice, practice, practice, have the passion and enjoy the game. One should not think professional at that stage. This is the greatest sport in the world and you can have a lot of fun playing it.”
While he has been a part of many a triumphant campaigns with Barcelona, Puyol has a special place for the Champions League triumph in 2006.
“Champions League 2006 final has a special place in my heart because it was the only game my dad, who is no more, watched me live. Of course, it was also the first Champions League title triumph with Barcelona, but it also has a very emotional connect,” Puyol said.
The FIFA U-17 World Cup will be held across six venues from October 6-28 with Kolkata hosting the final.