Failures pile up as Igor Štimac’s struggles to get results.
Indian football fans were delighted when the AIFF (All India Football Federation) decided to appoint former Croatian center-back Igor Štimac as India’s head coach back in 2019. Igor gave many young players a chance and had 6 players debut in his first match in charge. He got his first win against Thailand and things were looking good for the team.
The 2022 world cup qualification was the perfect opportunity for Igor to display the changes he has implemented in the team and how he plans to execute his ideas on the field. The campaign started with a 2-1 loss to Oman, but the team redeemed itself by holding the hosts of the 2022 world cup Qatar to a draw. India gained an important point, but from there all they seemed to do was just that. India drawed against many lower ranked teams like Bangladesh and Afghanistan.
After that losses against Qatar and Oman put them in a pickle and their only win in qualification came when they met Bangladesh again. A 2-0 victory put them in third place, hence not qualifying for the World Cup, however it earned them a place in the 2023 AFC Asian cup qualification.
Until now Igor has only a 16 percent win rate with the Indian team. Now in football you win some and you lose some, it’s only natural. But for India there seems to be whole lot of losing than winning. Something in the team just isn’t right, I wouldn’t go as far as questioning the intent of players, but maybe these questions have to be asked. When on the pitch the team seems confused regarding their role. In every 25 minutes a player would come through and create a chance out of nowhere, but in most cases the rest of them are absent in his support. It’s almost like they didn’t expect to have a chance, so when an opportunity arose they just weren’t ready.
Mostly in football when a lowly ranked team or even the underdogs face bigger teams, they adapt according to their opponent. When a team has more individual talent than your team, you have to move forward together as one to compensate for the lopsided talent distribution. One of the best examples of this is Celtic vs Barcelona during the 2012/13 UCL season. A match where the Catalonia side had around 90 percent possession but yet lost the game. Celtic held back, defended with all their might and waited for an opportunity, and they pounced the moment they got the chance.
The Indian team under Igor Štimac looks uninspired and non-creative. There are no flashy plays, defense splitting passes or even the illusion that the game is in their control. The team is almost always playing catch up and rather than implementing strategies of their own, they are always busy defending the strategy of their opponent. Something needs to change in the Indian Camp and the current coach is very high on that list. The period of demise for Igor Štimac needs to end, or his stint as the manager for the Indian football team definitely will.
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