Sunil Chhetri pays tribute to Novy Kapadia, says he brought football closer to people | Football News

India football captain Sunil Chhetri condoled the demise of renowned journalist and commentator Novy Kapadia. He was suffering from motor neurone disease and passed away on Thursday.

“Novy Kapadia’s passing is the loss of an institution. He brought the game closer to all of us in a way that was unique to him. He will always be a chapter in Indian football history that we will turn to often,” Chhetri said in a tweet.

Novy Kapadia was a known football pundit, who had covered nine FIFA World Cup tournaments. He was also an author and wrote Barefoot To Boots, The Many Lives Of Indian Football and the Football Fanatic’s Essential Guide Book.

The Union Youth Affairs and Sports Ministry had in March 2020 sanctioned ₹4 lakh to Novy towards his medical expenses. The decision was made after it came to light that he was yet to get his pension from the Delhi University from where he retired as a professor after 40 years of service. He was also given financial assistance from the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay National Welfare Fund for Sportspersons.