Wikipedia

Abid Ghazi

Abid Hussain Ghazi (Urdu: عابد حسین غازی; 1935 – 14 January 2016) was a Pakistani footballer who played as a midfielder. He is considered one of the greatest Pakistani footballers of the 1950s and 1960s, and also captained the Pakistan national football team.[1][2][3][4]

Abid Ghazi
Ghazi with Dhaka Mohammedan in 1963
Personal information
Full name Abid Hussain Ghazi
Date of birth 1935
Place of birth Unknown
Date of death (aged 81)
Place of death Karachi, Pakistan
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1952–?? Keamari Mohammedan
1956–?? Kolkata Mohammedan
1958 Victoria SC
1959–1966 Dhaka Mohammedan
1967–1968 PWD SC
1969–1970 Dilkusha SC
International career
1956–1964 Pakistan
Managerial career
1968 WAPDA SC
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

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Ghazi started playing football with Karachi club Keamari Mohammedan alongside his brother Musa Ghazi.[5]

He started playing in the Calcutta League for Kolkata Mohammedan in India in 1956.[6] In 1958, Ghazi played for Dhaka club Victoria SC in the inaugural edition of the Aga Khan Gold Cup.[7]

He also featured for Dhaka Mohammedan club in East Pakistan.[8][9][10] In 1959, he was an integral part of the Mohammedan team that defeated Karachi Municipal Corporation to lift the Aga Khan Gold Cup.[11] Ghazi was club captain in 1963 and led the Black and Whites to their fourth Dhaka League title.[12]

Ghazi represented the East Pakistan football team at the ninth National Football Championship held in Multan.[13] The team captained by Nabi Chowdhury made a surprising exit from the tournament in the quarter-finals after losing 1–3 to Punjab Red.[14] Ghazi won the National Championship with Dacca in both 1961–62 and 1962. He was notably team captain in the 1961 edition.[15][16]

International career

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First selected in 1956, Ghazi featured in the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo with the Pakistan national team under the captaincy of Nabi Chowdhury.[17] Ghazi was among the players present in the 1960 Asian Cup qualifiers hosted by India in Ernakulam in 1959, where Pakistan faced Iran, India and Israel twice each in the qualifiers.[18] He was also selected for the 1960 Merdeka Tournament in Malaya under the captainship of Qayyum Changezi.[19]

When the Burma national team visited Pakistan for a friendly series in 1961, Abid played alongside his brother Musa Ghazi, where the latter also captained the national team in one of the matches. Ghazi also featured with Pakistan at the 1962 Merdeka Tournament, where Pakistan finished runner-ups after falling against Indonesia.[20][21][22]

 
Ghazi sitting second from right to left as captain Pakistan during their tour to China in 1964

In 1963, he featured in a four-match friendly series against China in their tour to Pakistan.[23][24] In his last year with the national team, Abid Ghazi captained the national squad in an away friendly against China in 1964.[4]

Coaching career

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In 1968, Abid coached WAPDA Sports Club to win the Dhaka Second Division League while continuing his playing career.[25]

Personal life and death

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Abid's brother Musa Ghazi was also a footballer who played for the Pakistan national team.[26][27][28] After the fall of Dhaka, both were arrested by the Indian Army and made prisoners of war.[29]

"I am ashamed that Pakistan’s former national football captain Abid Ghazi’s son sold all [his] belongings for [his] father’s treatment. Ghazi sahib is on his death bed in the poorest condition. He was Pakistan football team’s captain. Is that how a nation should treat its heroes?"

Fakhar-e-Alam (@falamb3) on Twitter regarding Abid's condition on 8 December 2015.[30]

On 6 May 2014, The News International reported that Ghazi was on death bed, and in dire need of financial help without anyone to support him.[31] In December 2015, Pakistani singer Fakhar-e-Alam tweeted on his Twitter handle that Ghazi's son sold all his belongings for his father's treatment, and that he was in his poorest condition.[30] He passed away soon after on 14 January 2016, at the age of 81.[29] His situation also matched with former Pakistan national team captains such as Muhammad Umer, Abdul Ghafoor, Qadir Bakhsh, and his brother Musa, who passed away enduring similar hardship.[31][32]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Hasan, Shazia Hasan | Shazia Hasan | Shazia (16 January 2010). "Book on Pakistan football highlights key issues". DAWN.COM. Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  2. ^ InpaperMagazine, From (13 January 2013). "In-depth: Pakistan football". DAWN.COM. Archived from the original on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  3. ^ "DAWN - Features; March 31, 2008 | Living Lyari". DAWN.COM. 31 March 2008. Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  4. ^ a b Ahsan, Ali (23 December 2010). "A history of football in Pakistan — Part II". DAWN.COM. Archived from the original on 25 July 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  5. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Wednesday 16 March 1955" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ^ "Essa invited to play for East Bengal in Calcutta". Brecorder. 20 June 2005. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  7. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Friday 10 October 1958" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Wednesday 09 May 1962" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Sunday 08 October 1961" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ^ Iqbal, Ayaz Khan | Nayir (22 September 2024). "FOOTBALL: GLORY DAYS, PASS ME BY". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  11. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Thursday 24 September 1959". p. 6. Retrieved 21 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  12. ^ Dulal, Mahmud (2014). পাকিস্তান জাতীয় দল বাঙালি খেলোয়াড় (transl. Bengali players in the Pakistan national team) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. p. 14.
  13. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Monday 03 November 1958". p. 6. Retrieved 24 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Sunday 16 November 1958". p. 11. Retrieved 21 August 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Saturday 13 January 1962". p. 12. Retrieved 22 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  16. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Monday 24 December 1962". p. 14. Retrieved 22 June 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  17. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Saturday 10 May 1958" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  18. ^ "Israel Official Games 1948-1959". www.rsssf.org. Archived from the original on 2 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  19. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Tuesday 02 August 1960" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  20. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Saturday 25 August 1962" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  21. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Thursday 06 September 1962" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  22. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Friday 07 September 1962" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  23. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Saturday 26 January 1963" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  24. ^ "Civil & Military Gazette (Lahore) - Thursday 07 February 1963" – via British Newspaper Archive.
  25. ^ Mahmud, Dulal (2020). খেলার মাঠে মুক্তিযুদ্ধ (transl. Liberation war in the playground) (in Bengali). Bishhoshahitto Bhobon. p. 482. ISBN 978-984-8218-31-0.
  26. ^ "Pakistan's former football captain expires". DAWN.COM. 13 May 2003. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  27. ^ "The story of Karachi's KMC football stadium | Sports | thenews.com.pk". www.thenews.com.pk. Archived from the original on 1 June 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  28. ^ "Soccer's peacemaker passes away in Karachi". The Indian Express. 13 May 2003. Archived from the original on 8 June 2023. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  29. ^ a b "پاکستان فٹ بال ٹیم کے سابق کپتان عابد غازی انتقال کر گئے" [Former captain of Pakistan football team Abid Ghazi passed away]. urdu.geo.tv (in Urdu). Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  30. ^ a b Amer, Sameen. "THE GREEN ROOM". www.thenews.com.pk. Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  31. ^ a b "Former Pakistan captain living below poverty line". www.thenews.com.pk. Archived from the original on 7 May 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  32. ^ "PFF to take up banned FIFA referee's case". DAWN.COM. 17 October 2008. Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
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