It’s a hot humid Saturday morning of late June in Kolkata. We from the team of www.MohunBaganClub.com visited the club tent to have an informal chat with the new Mariners own boy – Mehtab Hussein. There were 5 people from our side. Sumanta, Shayan, Arnab, Arunima and Somnath. When we reached the club, we asked for Mehtab, somebody told us, he is sleeping at the dressing room. Sumanta went there and woke him up. We never wanted a formal interview with Mehtab; we wanted a pure informal chat with him. A pure Bengali “Adda”, in which, we wanted to discover the person behind this finest footballer, the powerhouse of Indian football. We were seating at the famous long table inside the club’s lobby. We started talking with some fuming cups of tea.     

Sumanta – Mehtab, we came here to talk to you from the MohunBaganClub.com. Do you know that our foreign members asked so many times for your interview?
Mehtab – Is it? Wow, I know that the officials visits the website daily.
Arunima – Mehtab, tell us about your childhood. When you started playing football?
Mehtab – As you know, I am from Mallickpore of South 24 Parganas. I started playing in some clubs at Baruipur, which is a nearby town. I practiced daily. Then I moved to a club in Dhakuria. I played at Nursery League. I played for Sub junior Bengal.
Sumanta – Any names you want to take, whom you want to remember?
Mehtab – Oh yes, I want to take the name of Amitava Ghosh, the coach of Sub junior Bengal team. He was a great guy. Also I want to take the name of Akhmedav, the Uzbek coach. They really helped me to be Mehtab today.
Arunima – Anybody else play football in your family?
Mehtab – No, nobody play football. My father is in Navy. My four brothers do not play football. My mother is a housewife.
Sumanta – How do you ended up in Mariner’s squad?
Mehtab – Well, I got a chance to play for Kalighat. That was my beginning in Kolkata football. Then I moved to FCI. There I spend one year. Then Tollygunge took me. There I had Ashim with me. We played a good football. I remember, we beat Mohun Bagan with Barreto and Amauri, 3 times in that season. We got Amal da there. I do not want to go into a discussion that who is the best coach in India. There are so many good coaches. But Amal da is like a teacher. He know whom to give what. He is very scientific, and got idea about the latest techniques and tactics. He is a great coach. But Bablu da (Subrata Bhattacharya) and Alok da (Alok Mukherjee) are also good coaches.
Sumanta – Who took you to Mohun Bagan?
Mehtab – Debasish da (Debasish Dutta) brought me here.
Somnath – Mehtab, as we see you, you are one of the rare players, who is a Bengali, and who has no formal stamp from any of the academies. How do you feel about it?
Mehtab – You know, nobody take care of Bengali players. There is no opportunity for them. There are so many good players, but nobody take care of them. You see, the players like Suraj Mondal or Tarif Ahmed, they have got good quality, but there is no good opportunity for them. I feel I have some responsibility for the young generation of Bengali footballers.
Sumanta – If we ask you to come and encourage in some of the small-scale tournaments for the junior and sub junior boys at Zilla level, will you come?
Mehtab – Believe me, I will be available for that any time. I am with these players all the time. I will be glad to be there.
Sumanta – Do you feel that if you get into any academy like TFA, it would be better for you?
Mehtab – Yes, I always feel that. I was rejected by TFA once. I feel, if I get into the academy then, I may have better physique and scientific training. May be I got some better height.
Sumanta – You also do a job at ONGC. But from the next season, in the professional league, the federation is going to implement a rule that no team can have more than 3 players, who are doing jobs for some other companies; rest of the players should be fully professional. How do you feel about that?
                  
Mehtab – See, my job will give me security after my football life; I always give more priority to my job. But if there is so much money, that will give me security after my retirement from football, I will definitely change my priority and will go for a full-fledged football life. My office helped me a lot; I need not go to office daily.
Sumanta – Are there any other kind of offers to you this season?
Mehtab – Yes, Mahindra contacted me. Salgaoncar contacted me. They had good offers too. But I prefer to stay at Mohun Bagan.
Shayan – Can we say, that after Gostha Pal, Manna, Chuni, Bablu, Satyajit, now Mehtab is going to be the Mariner’s own boy?
Mehtab – You know, I like this club. I like to play for Mohun Bagan. I never have any kind of disputes or problem with anybody in this club. I really enjoy playing for Mohun Bagan. So if the things are like this in the future, I will definitely stay here and will never change to any other club.
Sumanta – I am not asking to Mehtab as a player, I am asking to Mehtab as a Bengali, that deep inside your heart, what is the colour you have there?
Mehtab – It is always Green and Maroon. I was a Mohun Bagan supporter from my childhood. That’s why I choose Mohun Bagan in 2002. Before that I had a better offer from East Bengal. But I listened to my heart.
Sumanta – Now you are working as a TV Expert for a sports program. How do you feel about that?
Mehtab – As I told you, I am from a middleclass family. And everything is so ordinary there. Being shown in TV is a very different kind of experience to me apart from any football match. Everybody in my family is happy. Including me. I think I got some respect from my family regarding this. My father was in navy, and he always wanted me to do a job like him. But my mother supported me for my football career.
Shayan – Do you have any kind of sorrow in you heart that you missed the Pakistan tour because you don’t have any passport? Sukhwindar Singh once told, that he don’t know who is in his team, he just know he has Mehtab?
Mehtab – Yes, I do have. But before that I never had any kind of chance for the foreign tours. So I did not took passport as an essential thing for me. But now I have taken is as a very serious matter, and my passport is under process. And that statement from Sukhwindar is a great complement to me.
Sumanta – You saw the last year’s team, and played with it. Who do you like most?
Mehtab – Tomba, Dharamjit, Noel, they are good.
Somnath – How do you feel about this year’s Mohun Bagan Team?
Mehtab – Yes, we have a good formidable squad this year. Defense is stronger and we have the same half line.
Somnath – But we have the same problem like previous season, as we don’t have a good striking force. Do you think so?
Mehtab – Yes, I feel the same. But our officials are trying to get some good strikers. If we get two good strikers, I am sure, we will definitely win 3-4 trophies including NFL.
Somnath – Yes, we can play this CFL with some moderate striker, but afterwards we need some good one?
Mehtab – I do not agree with you. Mohun Bagan never plays any tournament just to participate. We play to win. And this year, we will be playing to win the CFL from the very first day. But before that, we need to have proper physical training.
Sumanta – Do you feel that we need to have one psychiatrist too?
Mehtab – Yes, that will be better. Constant presser and tension are there for us. So it will better to have a support from a psychiatrist.
Arunima – In your entire career, what is the best match?
Mehtab – Well, there are so many! How can I say?
Arunima – Still, if you feel any match that is different from all others.
Mehtab – Yes, I can take one match. It was Tollygunge Agragami Vs Mohun Bagan. I was in Tollygunge that time. I scored a goal from 40 yards distance. It was like a dream.
Arunima – And playing for Mohun Bagan?
Mehtab – You can take the last year’s IFA Shield Semifinal against East Bengal. We won the match after a hard fight. It was a memorable day.
Arunima – Coming to the bad part. Tell us about any match that you want to forget.
Mehtab – Oh, surely the match against Fransa in last NFL at Kolkata. We lost the match by 2-1.
Arunima – What is your birthday.
Mehtab – It’s 13th October.
Arunima – Do you have a girl friend.
Mehtab – (Blushes) No.
Shayan – Mehtab, we don’t believe that.
Mehtab – Only friends, there are no girl friends as such.
Arunima – Still, among your friends, is there anybody you like to see as the life partner in future?.
Mehtab – Yes. She is going to UK for higher studies.
Arunima – How do you like to spend your leisure time? Any hobbies?.
Mehtab – I like to sleep (Laugh out loud) and that’s how I spend my leisure time. What I was doing before you come.
Arunima – What to do you like to eat?
Mehtab – It’s “Daal”, “Bhaat”, “Alur Chokha” etc. I like the simple Bengali food.
Arunima – What is the secret of the powerhouse of Mohun Bagan? How do you get so much energy to run for 90 minutes?
Mehtab – Nothing special. Simple Bengali food, fruit juice, and some vitamin as prescribed by the doctors. That’s all. I believe that the real secret of my energy is discipline. I believe that the twice-a-day practice is the best way to get a good form. I am still not happy with my football. I feel, I can do, better.
Arunima – Do you feel that players need to have an organization of their own? To look after the matters related to players?
Mehtab – Yes, the idea is good, but you know, we cannot do that, because we are too much occupied with the game. But the retired players can always do such organization, as they have time, and on the other hand, they know the problems with the players. I feel, the players who are economically backwards, or the players with some problem can get good help from them.
Sumanta – Do you feel that there are some kind of difference between the treatment between the Bengali footballers and non-Bengali footballers in Kolkata?
Mehtab – The Brazilian and Nigerian players are very particulars about their food, their staying facility etc. We need to adjust a lot.
Somnath – What do you feel about the Mohun Bagan Supporters?
Mehtab – Well, they are true gentlemen. They are too sober. I like them, and respect them a lot. But on the other hand, footballers need to have constant cheer ups from the gallery. It’s the craziness and fanaticism of the fans, which drives us to win after a hard fight. We expect more support from you..
                                                                                          
Sumanta – Any message for the Mohun Bagan Supporters?
Mehtab – I know that last 3 years are terribly bad for us. But don’t loose your hope. This year we are going to give you good results. That’s a promise.