Legendary footballer P K Banerjee's condition improving

Legendary footballer P K Banerjee, who has been admitted to a private hospital in the city with high fever, is showing signs of improvement, hospital sources said on Sunday. The 83-year-old former India striker and coach was admitted to the hospital on Saturday afternoon with high fever and cough, less than a month after he was discharged from the medical facility, they said.

"Banerjee is being treated by a panel of specialists and supervised by a team of neurosurgeons. He is responding well to the treatment," a statement released by the hospital said. He was admitted to the hospital in January with neurological problems and for electrolyte imbalance.

Banerjee was discharged on January 23. He has been suffering from Parkinson's disease and dementia. Banerjee was part of the Indian football team that had won gold at the 1962 Asian Games in Jakarta and as the captain, he had scored an equaliser against France resulting in 1-1 draw at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome.

He had also represented India in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, the 1958 Asian Games in Tokyo and the 1966 Asian Games in Bangkok. After recurring injuries forced him to retire in 1967, Banerjee coached both Kolkata rivals East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, guiding the latter to win IFA Shield, Rovers Cup and Durand Cup in a single season.

Banerjee had begun coaching the Indian team during the qualifying matches of the 1972 Munich Olympics, a position in which he served till 1986. He was one of the first recipients of the Arjuna Award, when it was constituted in 1961, had received the Padma Shri in 1990 and was named the Indian footballer of the 20th century by FIFA.

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