BY AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
Rowllin Borges started his Indian Super League (ISL) career in faraway North East and after proving his prowess with the ball moved to Mumbai City FC where he got his first taste of triumph and has now jumped the border to join FC Goa on loan for the forthcoming 2023-24 season.
The journey from North East to FC Goa is long in terms of distance travelled but Rowllin has shown on the field that football has no boundaries when emotions are allowed to run riot.
At 31, Rowllin is one of the best defending midfielders who plays box to box and when the need arises is capable of going ahead and scoring and that explains the eight goals he has scored for the two ISL teams he has played so far.
"Football is about 90 minutes of thinking on the field. It is about being able to guess what the opponent is up to and at the same time not allowing the opponent to know what one is up to," observes Rowllin as he reflects on his ISL career graph which began in 2016.
Rowllin came into the limelight during his days with Sporting Clube de Goa but defined as a player with North East under Eelco Schattorie who gave the lad from Nuvem the space to breathe and live football.
Rowllin Borges has played under coaches from Spain, Portugal, England and is now going to be under the eyes of Manolo Marquez and the union may well see the player and club blossom together.
Living with other players is an experience that has helped me see the world differently. It has made me think more and that thinking has helped me take my game to another level
Rowllin Borges
FC Goa lost Edu Bedia but by signing Rowllin Borges, the team has in many ways mitigated the loss because Rowllin, like Edu, knows to fill spaces and is able to read the field of play with ease.
"Living with other players is an experience that has helped me see the world differently. It has made me think more and that thinking has helped me take my game to another level and this is one of the positives of ISL for me," admits Rowllin as he works on his fitness.
"There was a time when little attention was given to diet. Today, I know whether I should have red meat or not or what is exactly good for me. What is good for me may not be good for another player because our DNA is not the same," admits Rowllin as the conversation veers towards eating habits.
Rowllin is at the peak of his career and with Manolo calling the shots at FC Goa, he has got the opportunity to show that age does not matter because he, once again, has the opportunity to slide through or help his colleagues slide through opponents' defence.
"I did not get many opportunities to try dead ball strikes initially but got a few chances when I was with Mumbai City FC. A lot depends on what the coaches want from players but am sure that I am capable of taking potshots during dead ball situations," thinks Rowllin.
Apart from his man management skills, Manolo is known to give Indian players a free hand with the ball and Rowllin believes he will take that opportunity to see his colleagues in the team give their best.
"I know players in FC Goa who are capable of great things with the ball and I will try my best to help them as much as I can because in the end to see others happy makes me happy too," admits Rowllin as he prepares for his first season in ISL with his home team.
