Focus on grassroot level football, says Praful Patel
"We are right now investing actively with passion to develop Football in India and take it to a higher level. The development phase is the most difficult one but we have to see it through," Patel told the AIFF website.
"Our entire focus is on the Grassroots and that is why I can say that Indian Football is headed in the right directions as results are visible to us," he said.
"The number of Teams in the U-16 Youth League has increased tremendously and more Football Players are now involved at the Grassroots level," Patel added.
The AIFF Chairman maintained that there cannot be any shortcut to success.
"If we go for a shortcut then Indian Football will never go to the next level. There is no shortcut when it comes to Grassroots Football. It is important that what is happening is guiding change in Indian Football and the whole ecosystem of Indian Football is progressing as the bottom of the Player pyramid structure has beefed up massively," Patel said.
"A major reason why we wanted the FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 was that we wanted to focus on our Grassroots. It is imperative to develop Grassroots if a Nation has to bring on Football revolution and that is exactly what we intend to do, before, after and during the FIFA World Cup.
image: AIFF Media
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