Interview

Manuel Quaresma
Portuguese Football Federation general-secretary

At the media centre for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification draw ceremony in Frankfurt, the IndianFootball.Com Editors-in-Chief were able to cath-up and talk to the top officials of the Federação Portuguesa de Futebol (Portuguese Football Federation).
As reported earlier this week, the AIFF had announced that it would soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Portuguese sporting community - consisting of the Portuguese Olympic Committee, the Portuguese Football Federation, the University of Porto and Vitória Sport Clube.
IndianFootball.Com now wanted to find out directly from the FPF what it knew about such plans and if it would help.

IndianFootball.Com Editor-in-Chief, Arunava Chaudhuri, talked the FPF general-secretary Manuel QUARESMA got some further inputs from the FPF president Dr. Gilberto PARCA MADAIL with other FPF officials standing-by, among them Portugal coach Felipe Scolari, who coached Brazil to the 2002 World Cup title.

IFC: We at IndianFootball.Com have received information that the All-India Football Federation will soon sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Portuguese sporting community that three players and a coach can go to a club called Vitória Sport Clube in Portugal to train there for two/three months.
The information we received further said that the Portuguese Football Federation together with your nations olympic committee, the university of porto and the club Vitória Sport Clube that some cooperation has been talked about and that it’s also has been said that some portuguese club-sides or maybe even the Portuguese national team could come to India in the next two to three years. Is there any truth in that or is it just a story being made in India, which you could confirm or deny?!…

FPF: No, that’s the first time i hear about that. I don’t know.
(asks the FPF president Dr. Gilberto PARCA MADAIL, if he knew anything about this but he also says no.)

IFC: But there have been talks that there will be some help for Goa…

FPF: Ah, yes – with Goa; i’ve heard something about that, but I don’t know…

IFC: Because the president of the Portuguese olympic committee was in Goa last month and made some indirect commitments to help sports in India, among them was football…

FPF: Yes. yes, I saw and read it in the newspapers in Portugal…

IFC: You say it in the papers? But there are supposed to be some cooperation between the FPF and AIFF through the Olympic committee? Haven’t they talked to you directly?

FPF: No. No one has talked to us about it, so I don’t know…
(asks the FPF president Dr. Gilberto PARCA MADAIL once more, if he knew anything about this but he again says no.)

IFC: If you are approached by the AIFF for help, would you help them?

FPF: Yes, surely we would help in whatever way we can but one has to approach us first.

IFC: Thank you very much for the interview and all the best in organising EURO2004!

FPF: Thank you!