Romeo and Football – time to rescript a happy story
The 23-year old winger from Goa was the talk of the town after the first season of ISL. After a journey to Brazil and back, and the 'next big thing' has been reduced to mere appearances from the bench this season around. A journey which started with so much promise now needs a restart - a restart which Romeo needs desperately.
On November 12, 2015 Romeo Fernandes became the 500th player to wear the blues for the Indian football team. Almost a year after the boy from a nondescript corner of Goa burst on to the Indian football scene with the inaugural ISL, Romeo had finally made his debut against Guam in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers.
Romeo grew up in Assolna, a small village situated in the Salcete taluk of South Goa. Like many other footballers, Romeo's story was one of financial troubles in the early days. But, coming from a football-crazy state like Goa, football was always in his veins and his big move in football came in his teens.
Dempo SC picked up Romeo from the Goa Football Association’s First Division League in 2010, when he was plying his trade for Margao SC. At Dempo, he went straight into the junior teams featuring for their U-18, U-19 and U-20 teams. With impressive performances at the junior level, Romeo made his way into Dempo's first team by 2011. The winger, who held the ability to play on either flanks, went international when he was included in the India U-23 team for the 2013 AFC U22 Qualifiers after a good season in the 2012 I-League U-20 season.
Romeo Fernandes, however, remained just another name in Indian football until October 2014. Even regular followers of I-League would not have recalled Romeo as one of its biggest. Then came, the IPL of Indian football, the footballing extravaganza - the Indian Super League (ISL).
Let's Football
ISL is a polarising topic among Indian football fans. But whatever side of the debate you may be on, ISL is a big part of the Romeo story. The winger made his ISL debut against FC Pune City at the Balewadi Stadium as a 16th minute substitute. Goa lost the match 0-2, but Romeo’s performance caught coach Zico's eye.
“I saw qualities of an individual in him. I saw different tactical abilities. He is a player with speed and a player with different characteristics,” said Zico, reported NavhindTimes.
The Goan made it to the starting XI in the next game against Delhi Dynamos and rose to prominence with his goal against FC Pune City in the return game. A glancing header to beat Arindam Bhattacharya in the Pune goal was enough to announce the pacy winger’s name in the big stage. Romeo finished the ISL 2014 season with three goals and two assists in his thirteen appearances. He also bagged three Man of the Match awards in ISL with his impressive performances.
He was the ‘next big thing’ in Indian football, or at least some considered him to be the ‘next big thing’. With speculation about a possible move to Brazilian league in the air, things were really looking up for the Goan lad. Romeo returned to his parent club Dempo SC after the end of ISL and the goals continued to flow.
Oozing with confidence from his performance in ISL, Romeo smashed in 4 goals from 6 matches to take Dempo to the final of the 2014-15 Federation Cup. Dempo eventually lost the final 1-2 to Bengaluru FC, but Romeo was the talk of the town. He started Dempo’s opening game in the 2014–15 I-League season against Bengaluru FC on January 17, but the winger picked up an injury early in the game and was replace by Alwyn George.
The Samba tour
The agony from the injury soon turned into jubilation as Romeo signed for Brazilian outfit Clube Atlético Paranaense, a Brazilian first-division club on a one-year loan deal on February 23. With two and half months to his stint, Romeo made his debut for the club coming on as a substitute for team-mate Rafinha in the second half, to become the first Indian professional player to ever play in Brazil.
Things were really looking up for Romeo and Indian football - an Indian playing with the samba masters of football was unthinkable a few months ago. However, Indian football fans were in for a huge surprise when they found out India’s 38-member probables for the 2018 World Cup qualifiers against Oman and Guam.
No Romeo! Er, What? The ‘next big thing’ is not in the 38-member probables? The fans were unable to understand Stephen Constantine’s rationale behind Romeo’s exclusion. The coach set a sign of things to come as he explained Romeo’s exclusion. “Romeo has just played 18 minutes during his four-month stint in Brazil. How can one expect to play for the national team after just playing 18 minutes?” said Constantine.
“The boy went there to chase a dream, but was it a realistic dream? For me, (goalkeeper) Gurpreet Singh has gone to Norway on his own merit. I spoke to his coach (at Stabaek) a few days back and he’s quite happy with his progress. The door is open for everyone, but certainly not for a player who has gone to Brazil for somebody else’s benefits,” he added.
“Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.” ― William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet
The statement only threw up more questions. But within few days, Constantine’s statements started making sense. The dream move for the Indian winger had collapsed. With just 21 minutes on the pitch in the Brazilian league, Romeo returned to India requesting the club to release him.
"I have requested the club to return to India only because firstly, I would like to play for FC Goa in the Indian Super League 2015 and secondly I could not break into official matches on a regular basis. At this stage of my career it is important for me to be playing, so I thought its best to request a return to India," Romeo said in a statement to the media.
Speculations after Constantine's statement which had hinted that Romeo's stint in Brazil was a quid pro quo for related parties only gained further momentum after Romeo's sudden return.
Media reports cited many reasons for Romeo’s return; his shy nature was one of them. Some talked about him being an introvert in an in-the-face country like Brazil. One could surmise that this had something to do with his return. Also with first team opportunities limited, the only solution in front of him was a return to the home country. After all, the 23-year old had played only 21 minutes of football in his three month stint.
ISL Returns
When the ISL appeared for the second season, everyone was familiar with the Romeo story. Fans were looking forward for the burst of pace from the exciting winger. Romeo started the season with a bang - within three minutes of his return to ISL Romeo had slipped past his marker and set up a beautiful ball for teammate Mandar Rao Desai to slot in.
Romeo is back, everyone thought. But it is been all downhill from there. After banging in three goals in the first season, he is yet to open his account this season as things stand.
Romeo’s debut for the Indian football team also came during this period. The debut lasted just 45 minutes as the winger was replaced by Harmanjot Khabra to bring more solidity to an Indian midfield which lost Sehnaj Singh for a red card. The winger did not show any pacey runs down the right nor did he take on any opposing defenders. His performance was ‘okay’, as Constantine said. “For a first time player it was okay but a little bit lost at times because he doesn’t have experience,” said Constantine about Romeo’s debut, a Goal.com report said.
Romeo’s last year has been a roller-coaster ride, the story which started as fairy tale now looks like a sad love story. The story needs a restart, a restart which Romeo needs, restart to a promising career.
A Restart
The 23-year old needs a restart to his career. With Dempo relegated to the second division, Romeo will need to find a new club in the 2015-16 I-League season. A new club could be a new start for the ‘next big thing in Indian football’ or he could bang in goals in the remaining games of the ISL and make me look stupid. Whatever happens, Indian football needs Romeo. As India lies in the lower strata of world football, we cannot afford to miss out on a talent that Zico described - “as a player with speed and a player with different characteristics.”