Of all the highs in a game of football — a sliding tackle, a diving save, a through ball that shatters the off-side trap — the most uplifting (or heartbreaking) is the shot that bulges the back of the net. After the dust has settled and the stat sheet has been analysed ad nauseum, the only number that matters is the one in the goals column. The prima donnas who prowl the business end of a football field, waiting for their next kill, are therefore any team’s most valuable commodity. But, by filling such an important role, strikers are also substituted most frequently — a pair of fresh legs, coupled with a hungry heart and a new attacking blue-print, always lurking over their shoulders.

In India, however, the burden of finishing every move has been borne by the same set of weary players for almost a decade now. And by managing to somehow carry the load thrust upon them, Bhaichung Bhutia and Sunil Chhetri have kept the focus away from Indian football’s biggest problem — the lack of contenders for the forward line.

The following scoring figures from the I-League tell their own story:
* When Nigerian Odafa Okolie finished at the top scorer last season, it marked 10 years of foreign dominance. Raman Vijayan of FC Kochi was the last Indian top-scorer in the National Football League in 1998
* The overall influence of overseas strikers was never greater than in 2007-08, when they accounted for 136 of 227— that’s 60 per cent — of the goals scored
* Last season, seven players netted more than 10 goals. There wasn’t a single Indian on the list
* Odafa, the highest scorer in 2008-09, had 24 strikes while the highest Indian scorer Sunil Chhetri had only nine
* Of the 23 forwards who won the Man-of-the-Match awards that year, all were foreigners

This lack of strikers has, naturally, reflected on the national team. Since IM Vijayan’s retirement in 2003, Bhutia and Chhetri have started in every match unless injured. Abhishek Yadav has been a constant on the bench, but memories of him and the “promising” Sushil Singh failing to last the full 90 minutes of a group match against Syria in the Nehru Cup are just two months old.

Apart from them, Manjit Singh, Tarif Ahmed and now Mohammad Rafi are the only new strikers to have attended any senior national camp over the last two years. Dogged by injuries, Singh and Tarif are now out of the first XI of their respective club sides (in fact Tarif, with no takers and mounting insecurity levels, has signed with second-tier ONGC for a job).

The youngsters on the sidelines — Sushil and Subhash Singh — have been sent to the under-23 camp for further grooming, while Anthony Pereira, Marlangki Suiting and Syed Rahim Nabi have all taken up roles in the midfield. Pereira has dropped down to his “natural” left-wing position while all-rounder Nabi has become a jack of too many trades to find a place in the line-up. Suiting, meanwhile, is now a playmaker for his home club Shillong Lajong FC.

FLAWED DOMESTIC STRUCTURE
So, as Indian football wonders where it will find a striker to replace the ageing Bhutia, the reason for the predicament is believed to be a flawed domestic structure. The I-League’s fancy for foreign players has been described as “a backward step for a developing football nation” by national coach Bob Houghton.

To make things worse, the organisers this year implemented a new rule allowing three foreigners, one Asian, and one PIO (Person of Indian Origin) in the starting XI, following an Asian Football Confederation (AFC) suggestion that is perhaps more viable in countries such as Japan and South Korea, whose rankings are much higher and leagues of better standard.

Dempo SC’s coach Armando Colaco says the new ruling will not only create a potential imbalance (“Churchill Brothers can buy 10 foreigners, if allowed, but a team like Viva Kerala may not be able to,” he says) it will also militate against the emergence of Indian strikers since most of the overseas players are employed in the forward line.

“This rule is not going to help you produce national team players, which should be the aim of any league, especially in a country like India,” he says.

Bhutia, whose 16-year-old career is now on its last legs, is also vehemently opposed to the move. “When you can’t produce strikers with the existing set-up, how will increasing the number of foreigners in the league help?” he asks. “The influence of foreigners has increased dramatically over the last decade. Clubs like to have more forwards from abroad, as compared to midfielders or defenders. This has greatly reduced the scope for Indian strikers. Even national team player Sushil Singh had to miss most of his club matches last season. With more foreign players coming because of the new rule, the trend will spread to the midfield and defence as well.”

While the Indian midfield and defence occasionally throw up players who go all the way to the national XI — Anwar Ali, Gouramangi Singh, N Mohanraj, Rakesh Masih, Steven Dias and Surkumar Singh balancing the age and experience of Mahesh Gawli, NP Pradeep, Deepak Mondol and Climax Lawrence — the scarcity of quality options in attack is an issue that the coaching staff, too, is extremely worried about.

Former national coach Sukhwinder Singh, who now trains the Indian junior team, says: “If Abhishek Yadav has been on the bench for the last six-seven years, and it’s still left to Bhutia to win matches, it proves we haven’t found a substitute. It’s no surprise because there can’t be any replacements unless the number of foreign strikers in the I-League is reduced,” he says.

Players on the circuit cite examples of the colleagues to make their point. Chitrasen Chandam Singh, for example, was a first-choice option for Churchill last season. When he left for Salgaocar this year, his vacant spot was taken not by any of his Indian understudies but by Japan’s Dan Ito, who joined as the Asian player.

“Chitra was one of the most consistent players for us last season. Ito came and took his place, but is there anybody in Japan interested in Chitra?” asks Churchill defender Gourmangi. “We’re still a developing football nation. We need time before starting such schemes.”

Another case is that of Subhash Singh, who scored seven goals last season for Air India, but found the East Bengal starting slot too hot to handle. After their disastrous start to the season, he now plays second fiddle to the Ghanaian pair of Abel Hammond and Yusuf Yakubu.

WHERE ARE THE ACADEMIES?
But blaming the clubs is not the answer. They want to win titles, and have every reason to seek value for money — especially teams such as Dempo and Churchill who have qualified for the AFC tournaments. The real problem, however, is that the current set-up doesn’t force them to spend time and money to develop youngsters.

“The club academies aren’t too active in India because they don’t have any encouragement to spend on players,” Bhutia says. “Our system is yet to discover why foreign clubs are spending so much on their academies. The clubs should get financial benefits for producing quality players, like the European clubs. Take the case of Tarif Ahmed. He would’ve improved had he been playing for a big club. But he chose to take a job because he had to make ends meet.”

In the current scenario, Mohammad Rafi’s inclusion in the senior camp is a step forward, even if it means going back. The Mahindra United striker was called for a camp in 2005 and the rejection followed four years of obscurity at the national level. His former coach Derrick Pereira, who had a big hand in the transformation of the player, says age will not be a factor for Rafi any more.

“Rafi is 26, and he is in the form of his life (eight goals in 10 matches this season). He was overlooked for the last two years but the I-League has helped him mature,” Pereira says.

Bhutia is cautiously optimistic, hoping the “find of the season” will take some load off his shoulders. “Rafi’s current form is backed by three years in a top-flight club, where he played almost all the matches. He’s got better opportunities than most others. Hopefully, we’ll have a mature striker in him.”