"Thanks to a few of my friends associated with Real Madrid, I was able to get an audience with him (Carlos). I spoke to him before the game, during the game and after the game," Agarwal told dna.
June 6, 2015, was a scarlet day in the history of FC Barcelona. They Catalan giants defeated Juventus to win the UEFA Champions League final in Berlin. One of the many thousands who watched Lionel Messi & Co. make mincemeat of the Italian club at the Olympiastadion was Prashant Agarwal. But the team principal of Delhi Dynamos FC was there to pull off a stunner himself. How else do you explain his desire to get Roberto Carlos to sign on the dotted line?
"Thanks to a few of my friends associated with Real Madrid, I was able to get an audience with him (Carlos). I spoke to him before the game, during the game and after the game," Agarwal told dna.
And how did Carlos respond? "He (Carlos) had heard many good things about the Indian Super League and the buzz it was creating. Carlos had spoken to his countrymen Elano Blumer and the legendary Zico, who had a great experience in the first season. So he was very excited at the prospect of helping Indian football grow," Agarwal said.
But getting him on board was quite a tough task as Carlos, who has managed Turkish clubs Sivasspor and Akhisar Belediyespor, had offers from Qatari clubs. "Matching the price (salary offer) of teams from Qatar was very difficult, but I think all that got him here was the fact that he can inspire a country of 1.2 billion people to watch football."
Carlos was only supposed to be the manager, but the Dynamos announced on Thursday that he would be 'marquee player-manager'. The 42-year-old, who from international football after Brazil's 0-1 World Cup quarterfinal defeat by France in 2006, made up his mind on Thursday itself. "When he saw the support he was getting from fans, he just changed his mind and decided to come out of retirement. He's been training hard and is fit. For fans, he'll be an absolute delight to watch. After all, he is a Galactico."
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