Syed Abdul Rahim

Syed Abdul Rahim
Rahim Saab as manager of India during their golden era
Personal information
Full name Syed Abdul Rahim[1]
Date of birth (1909-08-17)17 August 1909
Place of birth Hyderabad, Hyderabad State, British India
Date of death 11 June 1963(1963-06-11) (aged 53)
Place of death Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India
Youth career
1927–1931 Osmania University
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1943 Qamar Club
1950 HSV Hoek
Managerial career
1950–1963 Hyderabad City Police
(head coach & secretary)
1950–1963 India
1958–1959 Hyderabad
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Syed Abdul Rahim (17 August 1909 – 11 June 1963), popularly known as Rahim Saab,[2] was an Indian football coach and manager of the India national team[3] from 1950 until his death in 1963, and a former player.[4][5][6] He is regarded as the architect of modern Indian football.[7] A teacher by profession,[8] he was a strong motivator[9] and his tenure as a coach is regarded as the "golden age" of football in India.[10][11][12]

Under his stewardship, the India national team earned superiority in both technical qualities and tactical innovations, and got the nickname "Brazil of Asia".[13][14] They went on to win gold medals in Asian Games of—(1951-Delhi and 1962-Jakarta), played semi-finals of the Summer Olympics—(1956-Melbourne)[15] making India the first ever Asian country to achieve this place,[16] win the titles of Colombo Cup for the years of—(1952-Colombo and 1954-Calcutta and came runners-up in Pestabola Merdeka—(1959 Kuala Lumpur).[17][18][19][20][21]

  1. ^ "Rahim, Amal Dutta, P.K. and Nayeem: The Coaches Who Shaped Indian Football" (PDF). la84foundation.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2010. Retrieved 23 November 2007.
  2. ^ Sengupta, Somnath (13 July 2011). "Tactical Evolution of Indian Football (Part Two): Revolution Under Rahim Saab". thehardtackle.com. Kolkata: The Hard Tackle. Archived from the original on 25 October 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  3. ^ Erik Garin; Novan Herfiyana; Neil Morrison (1999). "Asian Games 1954". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 20 April 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  4. ^ "History in Timeline of Indian Football". All India Football Federation. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
  5. ^ "Syed Abdul Rahim | The Architect of Modern Indian Football". Chase Your Sport. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  6. ^ Morrison, Neil (12 February 2015). "1955 USSR and India reciprocal tours". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 20 April 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Forgotten on birth centenary — Legendary coach rahim — SAAB yet to get the honour and respect he deserves". www.telegraphindia.com. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  8. ^ Basu, Jaydeep. "In unbearable pain but with football on his mind: The last nine months of Syed Abdul Rahim's life". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 8 January 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  9. ^ "Who is Syed Abdul Rahim? Know about the Indian football coach set to be played by Ajay Devgn". The Financial Express. 13 July 2018. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  10. ^ Venkatesan, Sudarshan (6 January 2019). "The Golden Age of Indian Football under Syed Abdul Rahim". The SportsRush. Archived from the original on 11 June 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  11. ^ "Quadrangular Football: India's Win". The Indian Express. Rangoon, Burma. 25 October 1953. p. 9. Archived from the original on 13 May 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  12. ^ Alper, Tim. "Asian Eye – Indian football still finding its feet :: Total Football Magazine – Premier League, Championship, League One, League Two, Non-League News". totalfootballmag.com. Total Football Magazine. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference rich legacy was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ "From facing death to playing through pain: The story of Jarnail Singh, Indian football's gutsy hero". scroll.in. Scroll. 25 June 2020. Archived from the original on 30 December 2021. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  15. ^ Srivastava, Devam (10 October 2017). "Legend Lost in Time: Neville D'Souza". www.chaseyoursport.com. Chase Your Sport. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  16. ^ "Home Sport Remembering 'the best football coach India'". New Indian Express. 18 August 2009. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  17. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "The Indian Senior Team at the 1960 Seoul Asia Cup Qualifiers". www.indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  18. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "The Indian Senior Team at the 1960 Rome Olympic Qualifiers". Archived from the original on 30 November 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  19. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "The Indian Senior Team at the 1961 Merdeka Cup". www.indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 20 February 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  20. ^ Chaudhuri, Arunava. "The Indian Senior Team at the 1962 D'Jakarta Asian Games". www.indianfootball.de. Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
  21. ^ Coutinho, Austin (9 February 2019). "Syed Abdul Rahim: Remembering Indian football's hero as Ajay Devgn-starrer pays homage to legendary coach". FirstPost. Archived from the original on 22 September 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2021.