Dempo eyeing Dudu for next season

Dempo SC are on the lookout of a skilled and experienced goalkeeper. And Colaco has admittedly been impressed by Paul’s consistency and heroics this season. But the club is in no mood to recruit the in-form player, as the dreadful chapter of four years back still haunts them. An accidental clash between Brazilian striker Christiano Junior and Subrata Paul in the Federation Cup final at Bangalore had led to Junior’s death on the field, and the unsavoury episode has stopped Dempo’s experienced coach Colaco from even thinking about recruiting him for the next season.

With the I-League euphoria over, Colaco is already hunting for a new goalie. It is not that he is dissatisfied with the performances of his two custodians Satish Kumar and Abhijit Mondol in the I-League this season.

But the coach has made up his mind to find someone as good as Paul. Dempo coach Colaco is highly aware that Shilton Paul has undergone a knee orthoscopy on February 11 and is not expected to be back to training before the next two-and-half months. But he seems to be quite interested in Shilton.

However, with three I-League titles in its kitty, Dempo SC club management is now looking forward to strengthen its youth development programme. Speaking to The Indian Express recently, club director Rebeilo said: “We have already acquired sufficient land in Goa to construct our own stadium where we will have a residential training school with our prevailing four youth group teams. Simultaneously, we also have asked the Goa Football Association (GFA) to help us regarding a tie-up with the Portugal Football Association over the youth development programme.”

Incidentally, the coach also seems optimistic about the return of the team’s dependable atacking midfielder Clifford Miranda in the forthcoming AFC Cup where Dempo SC will kick off on March 11 against a Lebanese premier side in Goa.

Colaco said: “Clifford has just started training with the ball. So I hope he will be available during the AFC Cup.” And regarding the foreigners’ inclusion in the team for the next season, Colaco has already acquired a verbal confirmation from Dudu Omagbemi, the lethal Nigerian striker who is now playing in Norther Ireland.