For 22-year old Romeo, 21 minutes of fame in Brazil grinds to a halt
You’d think Romeo Fernandes would be the first name on Stephen Constantine’s roster for India’s World Cup qualifiers. After all, he plied his trade in Brazil for first division side Atletico Paranaense. And earlier this month made headlines when he became the first Indian to play competitive football for a Brazilian club
But as it turned out, the 22-year-old’s Brazilian sojourn hasn’t impressed chief coach Constantine much. The Englishman dropped the midfielder from the probables list for India’s first two qualifiers against Oman and Guam last week and was quoted as saying: “The door is open for everyone, but certainly not for a player who has gone to Brazil for somebody else’s benefits.”
And what seems to be a fallout of this statement, Atletico Paranaense have decided to cut short Fernandes’ time at the club and released him from his contract on Monday. Fernandes will return to Goa where he will continue being a part of the FC Goa set-up for the Indian Super League (ISL).
In a short statement, the club said they hoped the ISL will provide him more exposure and help in getting selected for the national team. “At the end of the loan period, Atletico Paranaense has released Romeo Fernandes to participate in the ISL with FC Goa,” stated an official release. “The presence of Romeo in the ISL’s 2015 edition will also allow the player greater exposure whilst he targets India selection for the matches of the 11th and 16th of June, the qualifiers of the World Cup 2018.”
Plenty of hype, little else
Fernandes was loaned to Paranaense amidst plenty of hype in January after some noteworthy performances in the ISL. It was said he was personally recommended by Brazilian great Zico, who is FC Goa coach. However, there was always going to be questions over the genuineness of Paranaense’s intentions. The club had a tie-up with the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and the move was seen more as a marketing gimmick.
Fernandes’ loan period was supposed to last till June with an option to extend it further till December if he managed to impress the management. But during his five-month stint in Brazil, Fernandes managed just 21 minutes of playing time. He came on as a substitute against Nacional PR in a state league match in the 69th minute and barring that one appearance, he couldn’t manage anything of note. Consequently, Constantine decided against including him in the squad for the twin matches against Oman and Guam.
Constantine was quoted saying last week: “(sic) 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?”. Constantine further questioned the motive behind Fernandes’ move to Brazil, suggesting that ‘someone else benefitted from the move instead of the player.’
Chasing a dream
“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,” he had said.
Paranaense, meanwhile, have said they will continue to focus on the Indian market. “Atletico Paranaense Club would like to thank the period in which Romeo Fernandes was in the service of Flamengo and informs that it will continue with the project focused on the Indian market,” the club’s statement concluded.
