“Always preferred to stay indoors in Mumbai”

For Indian football player Anas Edathodika, life was full of struggle. The gutsy defender even had to drive an auto rickshaw to support his family while chasing his football dream. However, his career got a fillip after he got a contract with newly-introduced Mumbai FC in 2007. And from then on, he has never had to look back.

For the  31-year-old, it all started in the maximum city of Mumbai 11 years ago, when he signed a contract with Mumbai FC after attending the trials at behest of former National player Feroz Sherif, who spotted him in an inter-college tournament.

“I was young then and things were happening at a fast pace. I had come from a different background and culture and life in Mumbai was totally different for me. Though I loved the fast pace of Mumbai, I was not confident. So I hardly moved out of my room other than for playing and training,” the 31-year-old recollects his initial days in the city.

However, soon his financial condition improved and he could focus on football more. Anas had not played for any local club before coming to Mumbai. All of a sudden, he was playing in the I-League second division, helping Mumbai FC to qualify for the top division under English coach David Booth. Edathodika says that he stayed at the club for four years but did not make many friends outside of football.

Soon  Edathodika moved to another Maharashtra city — Pune — where he felt a lot more comfortable than in Mumbai. He had a four-year stint with Pune FC and also got Pune FC’s Best Player of the Year award for the 2012-13 season.

“I adjusted well in Pune. I also had matured by then and was doing well on the field. I was confident and it gave my career a necessary push,” he said.

Anas later had fruitful seasons with Indian Super League franchise Delhi Dynamos and a season with Mohun Bagan in the I-League. His dream of playing for India was realised at the age of 30 last year, when he made his debut in an international friendly against Cambodia. He got an opportunity to replace his good friend and defender Sandesh Jhinghan, who got injured.

“I am not a player of great quality. So I knew I had to toil hard. I used to play but didn’t get the basic knowledge of the game during my childhood. By God’s grace, though little late in the life, I found myself at the right place at the right moment. Finally, I made my debut for the national team,” he said.

He puts playing for the national team above than anything else. “I take immense pride in playing for the country. My best achievement has been to make it into the national team.

“The day I made my national team debut against Cambodia was the happiest day in my life. After I retire, people will recognise me as an Indian player, than someone who has played in the ISL or I-League,” he says.

However, family problems plagued the central defender throughout the last season in his new ISL franchise Jamshedpur FC and he could make only eight appearances under Steve Coppell.

“The last season was an agonising one for me. I had to struggle hard against those personal obstacles. After my dad’s demise, my mom was diagnosed with cancer. I was tired due to constant travelling. But everyone helped me to get over the situation,” he said.

Edathodika is now India coach Stephen Constantine’s first-choice to partner Jhingan in defence. These two have been the reasons for keeping things tight at the back and aid in India’s stupendous show in the last couple of years. Most of India’s games have come at Mumbai Football Arena during that time and they are becoming local favourites. Jhingan and Anas can reunite in Kerala Blasters for next ISL season. Blasters led by Jhinghan are close to signing  Edathodika to bolster their defense.  

“I have been a fan of Sandesh Jhingan since long. Although he’s very young and made his national team debut three years ago, I have always admired him. I always had the desire to  play alongside him,” he signed off.