Non-League and Academy football writer

Tufail Amjad is the first team head-coach of FC Baresi, as well as being the club’s sporting director. A real family club that means so much to Tufail, it was FC Baresi who he used to play for, during their days in the Middlesex County Football League. However, Tufail is about to lead FC Baresi in to their second season in the Thurlow Nunn League First Division South (step 6 of the non-League pyramid). And, I recently interviewed him about some of his memories of being involved with the club, and also his thoughts ahead of the new season, which begins tomorrow for FC Baresi.

Could you talk me through a bit about your background in football, prior to becoming the head-coach of FC Baresi? 

Tufail: I was a player for FC Baresi, when I was younger. From playing for the youth teams, we did really well, and then up until playing for the Under 18 side, I moved on to the first team then, who were playing in the Middlesex County Football League. I was the youngest player in the first team squad at the time, and it taught me a lot in terms of being alongside the senior players.

I played alongside very good players, like Marvin Smith and Junior Appiah, who are still at FC Baresi to this day. But, we had other top players at FC Baresi at the time, such as Zubair Haleem, who was one of the best technical players that I’ve ever seen. Zaeem Husein and Hadi Osman were other really good players, who it was a privilege to play alongside. At that time, in my opinion our team was the best in London at that level. If we had the infrastructure that we have now, then that team would have been really successful, and the togetherness that we had in that squad was unbelievable, and it was like a family.

After FC Baresi had restarted in the Essex Alliance Football League, I initially just came along to watch, I then became more involved again with the club three years ago. I came in as sporting director, and me, Romuald Boco, and Tani were running the first team. That got me back in to football again, and that was the season in which FC Baresi won promotion to step 6.

Could you talk me through some of your memories of playing for FC Baresi, during their time in the Middlesex County Football League?

Tufail: It was a very, very competitive league, and it was also a very good standard of football. The game which really stands out to me was a cup game with Indian Gymkhana Club. As a team we were all 17/18 at the time, and we came up against a very good team in Indian Gymkhana Club. We won that game 1-0, with a great free-kick from Junior Appiah, but footballing wise they dominated that game. But, with that togetherness that we had, we defended so well and we stuck to our game plan so well, against a really good side.

Who was the standout team that you faced in the Middlesex County Football League, in your opinion?

Tufail: It was Indian Gymkhana Club, 100%. 

Last season (2024/25) was FC Baresi’s first at step 6 of the non-League pyramid. What are some of your thoughts on how last season went?

Tufail: It was a real learning curve for myself and the club. It was a different league, and we didn’t quite know what to expect in terms of how the teams would play. But, in the second half of the season I thought that we got better and improved. There were games last season where we had to adapt, and play differently as a team, compared to how we want to play. I think that it’s very, very important in this league to adapt against different teams and grounds. And mentally you’ve got to be strong, and have a real game plan for every single game. So I think that we’re going to be better this season, having really learnt the league last season.

How do you think that pre-season has gone for the first team?

Tufail: I think that it’s been a good pre-season for the team. Everyone has worked really hard, especially as it’s not easy to balance work with training and games. And from the first day of pre-season the message was clear, and I think that pre-season has gone well for us.

Looking ahead to this season, what are some of your thoughts and hopes for the first team for the new 2025/26 season? Also, what are some of your thoughts ahead of your first game of this season, against Barkingside on Saturday afternoon?

Tufail: It’s going to be a tough game, and I don’t really know what to expect from Barkingside for the opening game of this season. In terms of what we want to do this season, we want to aim high and as always we want to win whatever league that we are in, which is what we always aim for. If we don’t win the league, then we want to get in to the play-offs. So that is our main aim for this season.