Stimac set to continue as Indian men’s football team head coach till AFC Asian Cup next July
Stimac set to continue as Indian men’s football team head coach till AFC Asian Cup next July: With the recommendation of the Technical Committee of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) on Sunday, Croatian Igor Stimac will remain as head coach. It is of the Indian national football team until the conclusion of the AFC Asian Cup in July 2019.
The great Indian striker IM Vijayan presided over the technical committee meeting where it was decided that Stimac should continue as coach of the Indian men’s national team.
After taking over the national men’s squad in May 2019 for a two-year term, Stimac has already been extended twice before. His contract was extended by a few months, until September of 2021. Then, he got a one-year extension that was supposed to finish this month.
Press release
According to an AIFF press release, “on the first agenda of the meeting, the Technical Committee proposed the extension of Senior Men’s Team Head Coach Igor Stimac’s contract to the AFC Asian Cup 2023.”
Since China had to back out of hosting the 2023 AFC Asian Cup because of the COVID-19 outbreak, the tournament dates have been set for June 16–July 16. However, the venue has yet to be determined.
After leading his country to the 2023 Asian Cup Finals with a dominating performance in qualifying matches here in June, Stimac’s retention was a foregone conclusion. At its meeting on Monday, the AIFF’s executive committee will merely have to provide its stamp of approval, marking the conclusion of this stage.
Stimac, a member of the Croatian team that finished third at the 1998 World Cup, will be participating in two international friendly matches in Vietnam later this month, for which a two-day camp of 24 probably has begun here on Sunday.
The September 24 encounter between India and Singapore will take place in Ho Chi Minh City, followed by the September 27 match between India and Vietnam.
Manoranjan Bhattacharya, a former India defender who has stated his intention to step down from his position as deputy head of the technical committee, was present at the meeting on Sunday.
Kalyan Chaubey, head of the All India Football Federation and a goalkeeper for East Bengal when Bhattacharya was their coach, had previously claimed he would speak with the national team’s former defensive rock to convince him to change his mind.
Statement
On Sunday, Chaubey told PTI, “He (Bhattacharya) is in the team and we will work as a team.”
The 53-year-old Viajayan is substantially younger than the legendary defender Bhattacharya. His career ended before Vijayan’s did, in 1989, and he retired at an earlier time.
As it became difficult for the Indian Arrows to meet the AFC Licensing requirements, the Technical Committee also made the decision to end their participation in the I-League. The money that was previously spent on the Indian Arrows has been reallocated to establish a new Elite Youth League in the country.
The committee also suggested increasing the number of female coaches nationwide for national teams. The AIFF announced that the Technical Committee had requested new strategies for the growth of women’s football and the Senior Women’s National Team.
The committee also examined ways to improve coaching in India, and they insisted that all Indian coaches be employed across all age groups. This would give them all the experience they need to move Indian football ahead as a team. The AIFF Executive Committee came over this morning to check out the National Centre of Excellence.
According to the AIFF, “the new management will examine the project and finalize a revised plan after debating how to complete the project for the optimum utilization of facilities” in a meeting of the Executive Committee.
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