Hyderabad Footballers Hail CM’s Skills Ahead of Messi Clash
The players who trained alongside him shared their excitement with Deccan Chronicle.
Hyderabad:Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy appears to be reviving the city’s passion for football, rekindling nostalgia among older generations while drawing fresh enthusiasm from the new. The Chief Minister practiced with local football players on Sunday and Monday to sharpen his skills ahead of the much-anticipated exhibition match between Argentinian star footballer Lionel Messi and Revanth Reddy’s team on December 13. The players who trained alongside him shared their excitement with Deccan Chronicle.
Players praised the Chief Minister’s footballing ability, his ball control, and the goal he scored while playing as a right forward during the practice match. Gopal Akash, the youngest player on the field and a striker, said, “I played with Revanth Reddy once before, in 2023, before he became Chief Minister. When our team won the CM Cup that year, I received the trophy from him. From then on, he became my inspiration. Playing alongside him again on Sunday felt like a dream come true.”
The Chief Minister arrived for practice in Jubilee Hills after completing his day’s work. He joined the players for warm-up and stretching exercises before getting into full action on the field. According to Perumal Dharmendar, who plays for the Accountant General’s team as a stopper-back, “He played with us when he was a Member of Parliament. On Sunday, all of us were stunned, he was playing on par with national-level players.”
He added that after practice, the Chief Minister interacted with the players casually and asked them about sports infrastructure and the state of sporting activities in their localities.
The players who participated in the practice session belonged to the Valluvar Nagar Football Club, located in the cantonment area. The club has been active since the 1970s. P. Rajendran, Ranga Reddy district president, who arranged the session, said, “This club has produced several outstanding players. International player Anand Kumar, Olympians Kannan and Peter Thangaraj, Indian team captain Amalraj, and junior India representative Bhaskar, all emerged from this club.”
