PANAJI: Vikash Dhorasoo had the best seat for the 2006 FIFA World Cup final and the dramatic 2005 Uefa Champions League final but the French midfielder wasn’t entirely pleased.
Seated on the substitute’s bench for both the highest-profile games in international and club football, Dhorasoo waited to take the field but that call from the coach never came.
“Maybe if I played a little bit, we could have won,” Dhorasoo told TOI with a hearty laugh on Monday. “We all know what happened in the World Cup final. With AC Milan (in the Champions League final against Liverpool), I could have had time on the field, but Steven Gerrard’s goal changed the situation. Milan had a great team with
players like Kaka and Andriy Shevchenko better than me.”
Dhorasoo lost both finals on penalties. Yet the former PSG and Lyon midfielder feels life has been kind to him.
“My great grandfather is from India and (he) migrated to Mauritius. My father came to France from Mauritius and I was part of teams that played both the World Cup final and the Champions League final. It’s crazy. I have to be happy. I cannot be sad because I did not play the finals,” said Dhorasoo, who was in Goa on an invitation from Alliance Francaise Panjim, the French language teaching and cultural institute.
France didn’t always cheer Dhorasoo.
In the pre-2006 World Cup friendly against Mexico at the Stade de France, when Dhorasoo was sent on to replace Zidane, the crowd stood up. Instead of egging on the midfielder, he was greeted with a chorus of boos as the fans didn’t like Zidane being substituted.
Dhorasoo was upset then, but doesn’t mind now.
“I remember that game against Mexico,” said Dhorasoo. “Zidane is one of the best players in the world, so playing with him, against him – we were of the same age and played against each other in France – and substituting him remains a great moment for me.”
