Ronnie Mia used to play football barefoot as he could not afford to buy boots. Occasionally he would borrow his brother’s boots and play. But the large size of the boot to play later is a risk. Ronnie had to drop out of the game due to injury.
Not only the injury but also the wall of poverty stood in front of Ronnie dreaming of becoming a footballer. But Before Ronnie dreams of becoming a footballer by overcoming all obstacles. On the way to fulfilling that dream, a big step for a 16-year-old boy from Habiganj is to go to Brazil, the country of football, for advanced training.
Joao Tabazara de Oliveira Jr., Brazil’s ambassador to Dhaka in 2016, took the initiative to send Bangladeshi teenage footballers to Brazil for training. A team of Bangladeshi teenage footballers is going to Brazil for the second time due to his cooperation and the efforts of the Ministry of Sports. Four went in 2019. This time the number has increased to 11. Ronnie is one of that team.
If all goes well, the footballers will go to Brazil next May. Ronnie returned to Habiganj after the final selection of BKSP. Ronnie is currently busy with the passport process through the District Sports Officer. The whole thing is like a dream for Ronnie.
If you listen to the story, you will understand the reason. Ronnie’s family situation is like trying to get salt. Old father Tayyab Ali used to cut wood from the hill and sell it in the market. Somehow the family was running on that income. Ronnie would have kept his mind on the football field even if he didn’t have enough rice. Playing like this is an opportunity to play Bangabandhu National School football. Ronnie caught everyone’s eye there separately. After the trial in Sylhet BKSP, Savar got the opportunity to be admitted to BKSP.
But there are also problems. Ronnie fled and returned home as he could not pay the BKSP’s fixed monthly salary. “Our financial situation is very bad,” said Ronnie. He could not pay the salary of BKSP to his father. So I left BKSP. ‘
After leaving BKSP, Ronnie went to work as a laborer at Chunarughat in Habiganj to help his father. He used to hand over the money to his father while extracting sand from the river in the area, “I couldn’t think what to do then. Seeing my father’s suffering, I felt very bad. At one point I started working as a sand miner. ‘ Ronnie regularly took part in various football tournaments in the area in his spare time. Barrister Saidul Haque (Sumon) was impressed by Ronnie’s performance in such a tournament and admitted him to his own football academy. But Ronnie also objected to going to that academy.
- The reason is the financial crisis, the father mortgaged the land to send his elder brother abroad. The brother took a job as a mason to pay the money. I used to pick sand. I told Sumon Bhai that I would not get anything extra if I played football. He immediately gave me a check for one lakh rupees and admitted me to the academy. ‘
- Ronnie redeemed the mortgaged land after receiving a large sum of money. After that, he played in Barrister Sumon’s academy for three years. Last year Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sylhet Division became the champion in U-16 Gold Cup Football. Ronnie was one of the most important footballers on that team.
Plays in the right back position. Ronnie had to go through several steps to get a chance on the Bangabandhu Gold Cup divisional team. Ronnie initially played in the union-level team. Even though his team lost there, the police station level team was formed with the players selected from that team. Similarly, the best players in the police station get a chance in the district-level team. Finally, the divisional team was formed with the best footballers from different districts of the Sylhet division. After that, 11 people have been selected from the best 40 footballers from 6 divisions of the country for the tour of Brazil. Ronnie has proved his worth by surviving that selection.
A 10th class student of Chunarughat Kachua High School is now wondering, ‘I never thought I would return to football. But if I play football, I will go to Neymar’s country. That doesn’t mean it feels good. ”
Ronnie had a trial at BFF’s Elite Academy last year. He came to Dhaka with a friend and took part in the selection. But at the last moment, he was in great trouble. But he never gave up on the fight for football. That friend of mine survived the trial. But I promise to practice better after dropping out. A few days ago, that friend dropped out of Elite Academy. But this time I am going to Brazil. ‘