FIFA World Cup Qualifier: Sacked as head coach of India’s senior men’s football team, Igor Stimac addressed the media on Friday, revealing what he believes is the “sad state of the All-India Football Federation” and its role in recent failures of the Indian team.”I came with an open heart to Indian football. But your football is imprisoned. It will take a couple of decades for things to improve which I don’t see happening,” Stimac said in a virtual press conference. “The people in AIFF don’t know how to run a football house, they don’t know how to organize cups. These people only care about power,” he added.
The former Croatian centre-back joined the team in 2019 and led them to their first-ever push into the top 100 of FIFA rankings. He further went on to talk about the recent run of bad luck which included the controversial goal scored by Qatar in the FIFA World Cup Qualifier. “If we were not robbed in the King’s Cup, against Malaysia in Merdeka, and finally against Qatar, our team could have been still in the top 100 and advanced to Round 3,” Stimac said.
The former manager will now look to decide on his future, something he will have more clarity on after the conclusion of the European Championship. He then went on to reveal that he had to undergo heart surgery following a meeting with the board in which he tried to explain the importance of prioritizing the Qualifiers over the Asia Cup.
“After I told them that the World Cup Qualifiers were more important than the Asian Cup. I received a final warning from AIFF. When I received the final warning on December 2. no one knows this, I finished in the hospital.
“I was disturbed with everything going on; stressed from the obvious problems. I had an immediate surgery on my heart. I wasn’t ready to speak to anyone or find excuses. I was ready to put myself on the line to prepare my team for the Asian Cup to give the best shot,” concluded Stimac.