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Sandesh Jhingan: All the people who were on the Messi tour, you will hardly see them at a national team game
Indian footballer Sandesh Jhingan reflects on Lionel Messi’s India tour, fan frenzy and the uneasy contrast with Indian football’s fragile and uncertain present
When iconic footballer Lionel Messi wrapped up his four-city India tour earlier this week, the images were unmistakable — packed stadiums, fans draped in Argentina and Barcelona jerseys, and ticket prices stretching into lakhs, snapped up without hesitation. For Indian footballer and towering defender, Sandesh Jhingan, the spectacle sparked mixed emotions. Joy, yes — buts also a quiet discomfort that stayed with him long after the floodlights dimmed.
In a long Instagram post that cut through the noise, the India and FC Goa defender, this Wednesday, acknowledged the scale of the moment. “It genuinely made me happy to see that our country does love football,” he wrote, pointing to full houses and the willingness of fans to spend big to watch the game’s greatest icon. What troubled him, however, was the timing. With Indian football staring at one of its most uncertain phases — domestic competitions hanging in the balance — the contrast felt impossible to ignore.
Speaking to us, Sandesh insists the post wasn’t premeditated or reactive.The thoughts surfaced late one night, after conversations within the FC Goa setup. “Most of the clubs are on the brink of dissolving. It just felt like all of that was getting washed away. No one did anything wrong — it just went through the cracks,” he told us.
Sandesh is careful to clarify that his words weren’t aimed at Messi or the organisers. “I’m not against the legend (Messi), not against anyone. Getting Messi’s dates is not easy. This would have been planned long back,” he said. His concern lies elsewhere — in what the tour inadvertently revealed. “We have so much love for the sport, but we’re not able to find a single investor who wants to invest in Indian football. That’s what made me question things,” he added.
In his post, Jhingan accepted responsibility for performances, but also underlined that football doesn’t function in isolation. Structure and stability, he argues, shape results as much as talent. “It’s easy to blame the players and we’re okay with that. But a football club is an ecosystem. There are people whose families depend on it — groundsmen, office staff, coaches. When the league is unstable, everything is affected," Sandesh said.
Perhaps the most uncomfortable point he raises is about fandom. “All the people who were on the Messi tour, you will hardly see them at a national team game,” he said candidly. Sandesh admits he grew up supporting European clubs himself. “That’s normal. But if you can spend lakhs on one match between Real Madrid and Barcelona and hesitate to spend a few thousand to watch Indian football, that difference needs to be spoken about,” he added.
Despite the sharp honesty, Sandesh insists he wasn’t seeking controversy. “This wasn’t against fans, the government or players. It was just to make people think.” His worry now is urgency. “Indian football doesn’t need division. We need unity. Otherwise, when the league shuts down, we’ll all realise what we’ve lost,” he concluded
