Baichung Bhutia: A Sikkimese Sniper

Baichung Bhutia is also called the  Sikkimese Sniper, is a previous Indian public footballer and is considered as the embodiment of the ascent of Indian football. He was born on 15 December 1976 in Tinkitam, Sikkim. Bhutia is known for his amazing shots and his pinpoint accuracy before the goal. His passion and energy for the game made him the mentor of Indian football. Baichung has captained the national team and presently assumes the part of manager at the Sikkim state football club.

Baichung played all sports in school like football, basketball and, badminton. His uncle Karma Bhutia oversaw Gangtok-based Boys Club where Baichung played in his initial years. Baichung played for a few other neighborhood school groups and clubs and got attention for himself the 1992 Subroto Cup where he got the    Best Player grant. His ability was spotted by previous Indian goalkeeper Bhaskar Ganguly and helped Bhutia move to West Bengal where he would play the greater part of his career.

Bhutia has been a part of teams like - India, East Bengal, JCT Mills, Bury, Mohun Bagan, Perak FA, Selangor MK Land, and United Sikkim. Baichung Bhutia made his club debut in 1993 for Calcutta-based East Bengal, scoring 4 goals in the association. His introduction for the club would check the start of a vocation that generally meandered from Mohun Bagan and back to East Bengal. Bhutia made his global introduction on 10 March 1995 against Thailand in the Nehru Cup. He was only 19 years old. In a similar competition, Bhutia scored an objective against Uzbekistan to turn into the most youthful ever Indian goalscorer at 19 years old. Having made his introduction for the national team at only 19 years old, Baichung was an integral part of the Indian football rise. He proceeded to play some heavenly football for both club and country and would become one of India's best players.

Bhutia scored only one goal in his introduction competition and scored his second in the same competition two years later against Bangladesh in the finals. In the 2002 LG Cup, Bhutia got support against Vietnam, helping India to a 3-2 success. Baichung won the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup and was said to be the most important player in the tournament with three goals. Bhutia's 100th cap was in 2009, in the Nehru Cup. He was the main player to arrive at the tournament. He turned into the Player of the Tournament regardless of passing up the last. In 1999, Bhutia turned into the first-ever Indian player to sign an expert agreement in Europe when he finished the paperwork for Manchester-based side Bury, where he would burn through 3 seasons. He showed up for them in the association and figured out how to score just 3 goals. After the disappointment in Europe, Bhutia concluded it was best for him to get back to India, by and by to East Bengal.

Bhutia retired from global football in 2011. A goodbye match was held for him in January 2012 against Bayern Munich. Bhutia then, at that point played his last club match at United Sikkim in 2015, which denoted the finish of his wonderful vocation. He right now is a manager at Sikkim and has established the Baichung Bhutia Soccer Schools to assist with supporting youthful ability.

By: Rajvi Somani