‘My future is in club football’

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Lazim Ali has been named the ‘best player’ in the under-16 category, a year after he had been presented with the most ‘skillful player’ in the under-13 category

It was about a year ago that Lazim Ali was presented the ‘most skillful player’ award in the under-13 category Asia-wide by Asian Football Confederation in an Under-13 football festival held in Iran.

Moving into the under-16 category, the 14-year-old midfielder won his first accolade in the category – the ‘best player’ award from Kerala Football Association.

Nurtured by Sports and Education Promotion Trust (SEPT) in Kozhikode, Lazim Ali bagged the award for his performance in the South Zone Sub Junior Football Tournament in Hosur near Bangalore in January.

Though the team had an early exit from the tournament, Lazim Ali played a key role in defense, to lessen the impact of the defeats. Besides, he scored two goals in the last match in which Kerala routed Puducherry 26-0.

“We did not have good forwards in Hosur, or else we could have qualified for the nationals in Goa. Besides, I had to switch to defense rather than play in my natural position. However, the last match was fun,” says Lazim Ali who is a native of Kallai in Kozhikode.

The player, a die-hard fan of Messi, also played a major role in helping Kozhikode district team to reach the finals of State Under-14 tournament in Kannur. “We lost the final to Malappuram in penalty shoot-outs. That too was a great tournament for me in the season,” he says.

Lazim Ali is now playing for the corporation football academy in Kozhikode. “I want to play in the club-level football in future. After my 10th standard, I am going to put more efforts into football,” says the midfielder.

“SEPT has helped me immensely to hone my skills. The exposure and skills I got from the academy have helped me a lot,” he says, thanking his former coaches in the academy. He was part of the Malaysian tour of the SEPT team.