Indian football legend Goswami dies aged 82
kolkata — Former India football team captain Chuni Goswami died at a private city hospital here on Thursday after suffering from prolonged illness. He was 82. He is survived by his wife and son. Goswami was captain of the 1962 Asian Games gold-medal winning team and had also represented Bengal in the first-class cricket tournaments.
For the last few months, Goswami was suffering from underlying ailments with sugar, prostrate and nerve problems.
Under his leadership, India bagged gold in the 1962 Asian Games, finished runner-up in the Asian Cup in 1964 and narrowly lost to Burma in Mardeka football six months later.
Goswami always donned the Mohun Bagan jersey and is a club legend.
Goswami played 50 matches for India as a footballer from 1956 to 1964. At the club level, Goswami held the distinction of playing for a single club, Mohun Bagan, throughout his career despite numerous offers from other clubs including one reported offer from English football giants Tottenham Hotspur.
The charming forward, known for his good looks and the ability to dribble past defenders, was also an able all-rounder for the Bengal cricket team, twice leading them to the Ranji Trophy final. He was known for his fast in-swingers.
Cricket came to Goswami later, after he had achieved all the accolades in football. But what stood apart was his mastery even in the gentleman’s game where he represented Bengal in 46 matches between 1962 and 1973 and scored 1,592 runs as also taking 47 wickets.