As Igor Stimac opened the door to the press conference hall after India’s reversal against Afghanistan, he stumbled at the doorway before finding his feet and making his way to the dais. It was a cruel symbolism of his team’s trip up a few minutes earlier on the pitch.
The burly Croatian cut a frustrated figure and opened the briefing with “I am sorry” and followed it up by breaking down the team’s embarrassing defeat at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium.
His answers were, at times, drowned out by ‘Stimac out’ chants from disgruntled supporters who had thronged outside to stick it to their favourite villain.
Before this game, Stimac was cheeky in claiming, “I am starting to love it [criticism]” but this would surely rankle. In his five years in India, Stimac has not been everyone’s favourite person in the room. From the chest-bleating self-appraisal of his work to his criticism of the system and stray excuses, he has often been the target of ridicule.
Stimac, however, chose not to give any credence to the noise. “I have a mission to fulfil. A few months back, it was a different story. I will answer them when the job is completed in June,” said the 56-year-old.
And as he left the stadium and hurriedly made his way out to the bus, he was harangued by a chorus of ‘Stimac out’ chants. The team bus drove off to loud boos.
As Stimac pointed out, the Indian football picture was, indeed, quite rosy in June last year. After back-to-back success at the Intercontinental Cup and the SAFF Championship, the hype train was in overdrive. Stimac, though, warned everyone not to get carried away.
Since then, India had an avoidable episode at the Asian Games, where after a U-turn, a makeshift team -- which was an under-23 side with three exceptions -- left for Hangzhou with no preparation and was sent packing in the first knockouts by a U-24 Saudi Arabian team.
India was knocked out of the Asian Games 2022 by Saudi Arabia in the round of 16, with the under-23 side losing 0-2. | Photo Credit: AFP
Further losses followed this in the King’s Cup, Merdeka Cup, the Asian Cup and now the latest humbling against Afghanistan.
The team is currently winless in six matches and has scored just once – from a penalty – in these outings. The FIFA ranking has dropped from 99 to 117 in eight months and the team has dropped out of the top 20 in Asia.
Stimac being the face of this team will deservedly receive a large share of the blame, and in the second half against Afghanistan, he didn’t have a solution to Ashley Westwood’s long ball tactic, which troubled the home side. But there is no place for the players to hide as well.
“I have a mission to fulfil. A few months back, it was a different story. I will answer them when the job is completed in June.”Stimac after India’s 1-2 loss to Afghanistan
After some questionable selection calls in Abha in the goalless draw against the same opponent last week, Stimac put out the best possible XI. And if Manvir Singh had put away a fairly simple offering in the third minute of the game, things could have turned out differently for India.
Chances were spurned in the away game, too. “We had enough chances to win the game. But we didn’t take them. I cannot go on the pitch to score goals for our players,” said an exasperated Stimac.
The only high point during all this was the victory in Kuwait in November, which raised the prospects of achieving a historic FIFA World Cup third-round qualification.
While the mood surrounding the team is doom and gloom, that win still keeps India firmly in the hunt.
Placed second in Group B, India’s fate, while out of its hands, can still be turned around: beat Kuwait on June 6 and hope a couple of results go its way. Stimac has requested a longer camp and the qualifier to be held in Kolkata, in the hope of getting the largest support possible for the final push.
“We are going to be a different team after the long camp. Half of our players are not bringing the intensity to keep going. And I cannot change that in five days. They are all the same players from June-July (last year) and they cannot bring the same intensity,” Stimac pointed out.
His longer camps have yielded improved performances and results in the past but they also throw light on the fitness of these players and their Indian Super League (ISL) coaches during the peak of the domestic season.
His inability to share responsibility for bad results if his wishes aren’t met has also irked many. Stimac must also remember that only the period between May and June allows for an extended training camp, due to the nature of the football calendar.
Stimac has requested a longer camp and the qualifier to be held in Kolkata, in the hope of getting the largest support possible for the final push. | Photo Credit: Murali Kumar K / The Hindu
This could well be his last demand to the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and after five years, with his credit in the bank fast running out, it might be time for Stimac’s one last splurge.
“There shouldn’t be any [doubters],” Stimac urged before the Afghanistan home game.
“Many times, we have proved [critics] wrong that our team works perfectly together when we have enough time to work together.
“I would love all of you to have some trust in our work because it’s been proven so many times. Whenever we have these special situations for a long camp, we shine so much that everybody starts trusting us and having faith in us.”
Come June, Stimac might prove his detractors wrong and ‘the villain’ could once again have the last laugh.
Comments
SHARE