New Delhi, June 14 (IANS) A goalkeeper himself, Subrata Paul understands the pain and embarrassment of Robert Green and sympathises with the England goalkeeper who is under fire and a butt of humour for letting the ball bobble out his grasp, allowing the United States find the equaliser and draw their World Cup football tie 1-1.
The 30-year-old’s calamitous error has been the talking point at the World Cup. No amount of apology to fans and feeling of remorse would put down the wave of growing resentment and criticism against him.
Then there is a furious debate whether the lightness of the Jabulani ball had anything to do with the slip with the manufacturers joining the issue by blaming Green’s poor positioning.
Green, too, hinted that the lightness of the ball may have something to do with the howler. ‘It may well have moved. I don’t often miss a ball like that… not by that much.’
Paul concurs with Green. ‘It is a human error and it happens,’ he says letting off a sympathetic grin.
‘You can’t do anything about it. He must be very upset with the gaffe and it will haunt him for the rest of his life. More so, if England do not go far in this World Cup,’ Paul, the gutsy goalkeeper who won the Nehru Trophy for India last year with his brilliant goalkeeping, told IANS.
‘Goalkeeping is a tough job and unfortunately people tend to remember only the mistakes. One bad miss and you will be crucified,’ says Paul who brought off three excellent saves, including one in the sudden death in the final against Syria last year.
Paul says Green may be demotivated at the moment, but he is too experienced to let it disturb him much and will pick himself up because it is just the start of the tournament.
‘Right now he must be feeling miserable, but his teammates and the team management will have to boost his confidence by keeping faith in him.’
Asked how Green can get back his confidence, Paul was quick to point out that coach Fabio Capello should not drop him for the next match.
‘That would do a world of good to Green’s confidence. Much depends on the coach and he has to tackle the situation quickly and effectively.
‘If the coach is Bob Houghton (India coach), then the player will come out of any crisis,’ says Paul whose career was resurrected by the Englishman.
‘When none of the domestic clubs was willing to look at me, Bob sir trusted me and he picked me for the national team. That inspired me,’ says Paul, who was here to interact with 16 school children who will fly to South Africa to watch their favourite stars at the initiative of Coca Cola and the All India Football Federation.
Paul, a diehard Argentina fan, met the youngsters and wished them well.
‘In football, there is nothing greater than the World Cup and these youngsters are very fortunate that they are going to get a feel of it live. We never had such an opportunity. They will get so much to learn and soak the ambience,’ says Paul, who hails from Sodepur, a small town in West Bengal.
Asked when Indian fans can see their own team at football’s biggest stage, Paul, who recently came back from trials with Vancouver Whitecaps FC, said that if Houghton is the coach for another seven-eight years, the long cherished dream could come true.
‘We have improved a lot under Houghton. Now our focus is on the Asian Cup next year.’
