The AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Hong Kong was, in all likelihood, Manolo Marquez’s last game in charge as the Indian football team coach. The Spaniard reportedly has expressed his desire to leave. Rather, he should be sacked in the morning.
Apologies for drawing a Stevie Wonder analogy, but Marquez is full-time FC Goa manager and a “part-time lover” (read, coach) of Indian football. Sir Matt Busby simultaneously managed Manchester United and Scotland in 1958. Jimmy Murphy was Sir Matt’s assistant at United and the manager of the Wales national team. For a brief period, Sir Alex Ferguson managed Aberdeen and Scotland. As regards Marquez, how’s that for company?
On a serious note, good riddance. After taking the India job, Marquez brought a 40-year-old Sunil Chhetri back from retirement to the Indian team fold because his other forwards weren’t scoring goals. Marquez’s coaching regime started with a goalless draw against Mauritius – a country placed 55 spots below India in the FIFA rankings. His stint has all but ended with a defeat against 153rd-ranked Hong Kong. Any further delay to get rid of him might see a phone call to Shyam Thapa, now 77, from the coach, persuading the former India striker to dust off his boots; tongue firmly ensconced in cheek.
To be fair, Marquez is incidental. Even Jose Mourinho won’t be able to resurrect the Indian football team – a side replete with bang-average players. Take the case of Ashique Kuruniyan, a Rs 1.2-crore acquisition for Mohun Bagan. One of the reasons for India’s defeat against Hong Kong was that Kuruniyan missed a sitter. Kartik Seth was better – old-timers would attest.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF), an organisation that revels in the “laughter is the best medicine” catchphrase, had announced a Rs 43-lakh cash bonus for the Indian team if they managed to beat Hong Kong. A lot of money was saved for a beleaguered football body that had reportedly slashed nearly Rs 20 crore from its competitions’ budget in the last fiscal. The budget for grassroots development and courses was reduced from Rs 1 crore to Rs 22 lakh. Forget world level, India becoming competitive in Asia is itself wool-gathering.
A closed-shop league, a bunch of overpaid players and a systematic decay – the combination has made Indian football irrelevant. A wholesale change from top down is the solution, but it’s unlikely to happen.
Almost three decades ago, Anjan Mitra (God bless his soul), then Mohun Bagan secretary, told this correspondent that India wouldn’t be qualifying for the World Cup finals in the next “100 years”. Circa 2025, and nothing has changed.