ISL: Diego Maradona's very humble, says Mumbai City FC's Matias Defederico

Mumbai City FCs Argentine winger Matias DefedericoWhen Mumbai City FC announced the signing of Argentina winger Matias Defederico for season 3 of the Indian Super League ISL head coach Alexandre Guimaraes had this to say ldquoDefederico possesses immense skill and talent We are confident that he will be a huge asset for the team in the upcoming seasonrdquoCall it prophecy or just Guimaraesrsquo ability to spot talent the Buenos Airesborn player has not just been an asset but his explosive dribbling and left foot has been influential in the sidersquos journey to seal a playoffs berth for the first time in the ISLMatty as hersquos fondly called by his teammates made his debut for Argentine Club Atletico Huracan in 2007 After establishing himself there he soon plied his trade with South American heavyweights like Corinthians and Independiente But the highlight of his growing career was in 2009 when he scored on debut for the Argentina national team formed by legend Diego Maradona A goal and an assist by Defederico saw La Albiceleste cap off a brilliant 31 win against Panama in 2009 ldquoAt that time I was 19 and was playing really well It was the best that I have played in my career till now and it was only fitting that Maradona chose merdquo Defederico told midday yesterday when quizzed about his ascension to the national teamThe 27yearold shared an instance of what Maradona was like when he was with the players ldquoI met him during the first training we had He was very friendly and was just like another player He would make the players feel that he is not a legend In a way he would bridge the gap between him and the playersrdquo Defederico who has also met his countryrsquos superstars like Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero added ldquoI met them but never got to play with them We spoke about football when we went out for dinnersrdquo he saidIn 2009 Defederico was lauded as the next Messi But on hindsight reckons he can never stand a chance to play for Argentina again ldquoThere are better players than me out there and they deserve a place more than me in the teamrdquo he said with a touch of humility in his toneAlthough a spot in the national side has evaded him since then a call from his friend Argentina player Nico Velez plays for NorthEast United FC pushed Defederico to display his skills on Indian shores Under Maradonarsquos tutelage the South American connect has followed him to India as well mdash having a Costa Rican coach has worked in his favour ldquoYes definitely not only me but the others players too from Argentina and Brazil have benefited The communication also is much easierrdquo Defederico who also scored a goal on debut against Pune City FC for Mumbai pointed outldquoIt was one of the first proposals I got and the fact that the coach personally called me showed that the club has trust in me so that raised my confidence while playingrdquo he addedMatias gets a taste of IndiaDefederico has already gone sightseeing this being his first trip to India ldquoIn the first week I went with the team to the see the Gateway of India Today I plan to take my dad thererdquo he said Indian food has not gone down too well for him ldquoItrsquos very spicy so for me itrsquos a little difficult Once I ate the food and it was not a good experiencerdquo he guffawedOther than coowner Ranbir Kapoor Defederico admits he knows no other BTown actors ldquoBut I have listened to a few Hindi songsrdquo he said Although the ISL has been a great experience he does miss his wife and kids a lot ldquoWhen I am in the hotel I think about them so sometimes it gets a bit difficultrdquo Defederico who is married to Cinthia Fernandez said The couple have three daughters mdashCharis Bella and Francesca