Kashmiri football duo to return back after training in Brazil

Srinagar, Jan 18 (PTI) Two budding footballers fromKashmir will be returning home later this month after trainingwith a former teammate of football legend Pele at an academyin Brazil.

Juan Marcos Troia, whose International Sports AcademyTrust (ISAT) facilitated the year-long stint of Mir AbdulHanan (19) and Musadiq Mehraj (18) in Brazil, hoped that theduo will bring in riches of skill and professional experiencefrom the latin American country.

Hanan and Musadiq were sent to Brazil by ISAT forprofessional football training in 2010 as part of culturaland sports exchange programme.

"Hanan and Musadiq left Kashmir with an empty luggage ofknowledge and experience. Now, when they are coming back Ihope their luggage will be full of skills and professionalexperiences. We are all waiting that they will share and showto us what they have learnt in Brazil," Troia, coach andDirector ISAT, said.

The two Kashmiri players were trained by Fernando GuisiniNeto, a former member of the Brazilian national team, who alsoplayed for Santos Football Club with Pele.

Coach Troia is excited and believes that the return ofthe duo will boost other ISAT players to do well.

"The return of the two promising footballers will notonly strengthen team ISAT but also bring in two potentialassistants who will carry forward ISAT''s objective to promoteprofessional footballers," Troia said.

The coach said both the players will bring in theBrazilian football culture and help enrich the localfootballers.

"Hanan and Musadiq were excited at the prospects ofcoming back and joining ISAT in Kashmir again."

As part of the exchange programme, the players joinedreputed football clubs in Brazil and trained with professionalplayers and coaches.

Hanan and Musadiq joined the under�19 team of MariliaFootball club.

"Both the players were put into a professional trainingschedule that included two practice sessions in a day andattending regular school work in the afternoons. In September,both the players travelled to Rio de Janeiro and joined a newclub, Friburguense Atletico club; a first division club, wherethey continued their training," the coach added.