Chuni GOSWAMI

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan – Independent India’s second president – was known to be a vocal admirer of Chuni Goswami.

Born in Kishoreganj (now in Bangladesh) in 1938, Chuni Goswami shifted to Kolkata when he was still very young.

At the age of eight, he was spotted playing football at South Kolkata’s Jodhpur Park ground by Balaidas Chatterjee, who, two years later, would go on to coach the Indian football team at the 1948 London Olympics - their maiden Summer Games.

Chatterjee’s close association with Mohun Bagan landed Chuni Goswami in the Mariners’ youth setup.

After playing for Mohun Bagan junior team, Chuni transitioned to the senior team at the age of 16 and remained loyal to the Green and Maroons till his retirement in 1968.

From 1960 to 1964, Chuni Goswami captained Mohun Bagan and 1960 to 1964 and led the team to three successive Durand Cup wins and four Kolkata League triumphs on the trot.

On the international arena, Chuni Goswami made his debut in 1956 against the Chinese Olympic team. He continued to serve India with distinction till his retirement from international football in 1964, aged just 26.

Chuni Goswami made his Olympic debut at the 1960 Rome Games. Despite India failing to make it past the group stages, the team held European giants France to a famous 1-1 draw and gave a tough time to a strong Hungary during a 2-1 defeat.

At the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo, Chuni Goswami scored two goals to help India reach the semi-finals but missed out on a medal after losing to Indonesia in the bronze medal match.

The crowning moment of Chuni Goswami’s short-yet-illustrious football career was captaining India to the gold medal at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta. Chuni led from the front and scored three goals in the tournament, including a brace in the semi-finals against Vietnam.

That year, he was conferred with the Best Striker of Asia Award and also reportedly received an offer to join English club Tottenham Hotspur. Chuni Goswami, though, decided to stay in India due to his love for Mohun Bagan.

Two years later, under Goswami’s captaincy, India finished runners up at the 1964 Asian Cup in Israel – their best finish at the premier continental football tournament.

Months later, Chuni Goswami-led India beat South Korea and Japan to reach the final of the Merdeka Cup. In the final, though, the team went down 1-0 to Burma and settled for silver. It was Chuni Goswami’s final match wearing India colours.

Though he made his mark as a footballer, Chuni Goswami was a gifted athlete and excelled in several sports, including tennis, carrom and cricket.

Interestingly, Chuni Goswami was also an accomplished first class cricketer and played for the Bengal Cricket team. An all-rounder, he made his debut at the Ranji Trophy – India’s premier domestic competition – in 1962, while he was still playing football at the highest level.

During his days playing cricket, Chuni Goswami played in two Ranji Trophy finals. In 1968-69, despite losing to Ajit Wadekar’s Mumbai in the decider, Chuni Goswami impressed with the bat, scoring 86 and 84 in his two innings.

In 1972, Chuni Goswami was the captain of the Bengal team which reached the final but lost out to Mumbai again. Sunil Gavaskar was playing for Mumbai in that season.

Before retiring from cricket in 1973, Chuni Goswami played 46 first class matches, scoring 1,592 runs and scalping 47 wickets.

After retiring from playing sports, he served as the first director of the Tata Football Academy – India’s top grassroots football academy - in Jamshedpur from 1986 to 1990.

An Arjuna Awardee in 1963 and a Padma Shri winner in 1983, Chuni Goswami passed away on April 30, 2020, at the age of 82.