Will Muhammad Essa’s return change the fortunes of the Pakistan National Team?

Will Muhammad Essa’s return change the fortunes of the Pakistan National Team?

Ask any football fan in Pakistan to name their favourite player and the majority will say Muhammad Essa, the famous striker who scored a free-kick in stoppage time against India.

Arguably the most talented player to have donned the Pakistan colours from the domestic league, Essa was a play-maker for the National team that none had witnessed before.

Having been scouted by John Layton in 1999, the Chaman-born player was quickly integrated into the first team setup shortly after. Although initially struggling to impose himself in squad, Essa soon lived up to his potential after guiding the Nation to victory
in the 2004 SAFF Games.

The attacker was the heart and soul of the team and also ended up as the player of the tournament, in addition to gaining a gold medal.

After establishing himself as a regular, the 27-year-old was an automatic first choice for the 2005 series against India and it was then he really made his mark on the Pakistani game.

Primarily plying his trade as a forward, the former PTCL FC man netted a brilliant solo effort in the opening match and rescued his side after they had gone 1-0 down in the majority of the game.

Essa continued his fine form and also netted in the final 3-0 drubbing of the arch-rivals, a feat which garnered the attention of Indian giants, East Bengal club.

The I-League outfit reportedly offered the front-man a professional contract but the Pakistan Football Federation declined the move due to reasons which have never been revealed to the public.

PFF’s decision not to send their star asset abroad to play ignited a long running rivalry that continues to this day. According to the officials, Essa has refused to play for the National team if he is not given the captaincy.

While the Federation have waived away his demands, the team has suffered in his absence and the results have been getting worse fixture by fixture.

Scintillating matches against Japan and Singapore seem like a thing of the past and without the services of the mercurial Muhammad Essa are unlikely to be repeated anytime soon.

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Posted by Shahrukh Sohail on Nov 4 2011. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry