Off-side: Who next, better choose the best
India’s FIFA World Cup qualifiers started off with a spark, an away win over Kuwait. But that spark fizzled out soon, leaving tears in its wake. Igor Stimac’s team, despite the initial promise, missed out on advancing to the final qualifying round of the Asian Zone after a rather contentious 1-2 defeat to Qatar in Doha.
The last eight months of Stimac’s five-year tenure was marred with subpar performances as a hapless India stuttered from one ignominy to another. Since the triumphant evening at the Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait City, India lost six of its eight fixtures, conceding 13 goals while scoring just two. After finishing bottom of the group in the AFC Asian Cup with zero points and zero goals, the team lost to Afghanistan, ranked 41 places below, at home and then drew with Kuwait — jeopardising its chances of progressing to the third round.
Stimac, a World Cup semifinalist with Croatia, came to India in 2019 amidst much hullabaloo, promising to rescue the team from the doldrums of defensive, long-ball football. He shook up the squad, bringing in fresh faces like Anwar Ali, Jeakson Singh, and Lalengmawia Ralte from India’s 2017 under-17 World Cup team. “I love great challenges and as far as I can see, football in your wonderful country is a sleeping giant. I have seen most of India’s AFC (Asian Football Confederation) games on Arena Sports TV channel and after my candidacy, I have done serious research on the ISL (Indian Super League) and I-League,” the coach said ahead of his first game with the Indian national team.
Ironically, over the years, Stimac was seldom spotted at Indian Super League or I-League matches, preferring to monitor the leagues from his home in Zagreb.
Three back-to-back titles in 2023 had brought in a sense of feel good that generally eludes Indian football. But Stimac and his team failed to carry forward that confidence and form against the better teams of the continent. His tenure ends with a 35.8 win per cent rate in 53 matches, with just two victories over higher-ranked opponents.
As the losses piled up, Stimac became adept at dodging responsibility, pointing fingers at the players, the league, the referees, or the limited time he had with the team. An extended camp, which he touted as the elixir to all the ills of the national team, failed to have the desired impact as India drew with Kuwait and then lost to Qatar.
With the All India Football Federation finally bringing an end to his reign, the attention shifts to finding his replacement. It might be wise for Indian football officials to resist the temptation of chasing another high-profile name and instead focus on someone with first-hand experience in Indian club football. With aspirations of breaking into the top-10 in Asia, they can also consider someone like Park Hang-seo, who has enjoyed success at the continental level. The Korean coach, a former assistant to Guus Hiddink, was instrumental in guiding Vietnam to the semifinals of the 2018 Asian Games and the quarterfinals of the 2019 AFC Asian Cup.
Indian football’s success can only come from the bottom up. The Federation’s main aim should be a youth programme that gets us into the FIFA under-17 World Cup every year.