AIFF President Kalyan Chaubey On Indian Strikers' Rule Change In ISL: "Stakeholders..."

All India Football Federation (AIFF) president Kalyan Chaubey on Friday admitted that the national team has been struggling to win matches of late after it faced backlash following the 0-1 shock loss to Hong Kong in the AFC Asian Cup qualifying round match. The defeat left India in a precarious position in its bid to qualify for the continental showpiece for the third time in a row. Addressing a press conference here, Chaubey alluded to lack of goals from the Indian strikers, which he said could be one of the reasons for the poor show by the team under Manolo Marquez. He said the stakeholders will discuss on how to increase the number of Indians playing as strikers in domestic clubs.

"For any sport to grow in popularity, it is essential for the national team to perform well. It's true that our national team has struggled to secure wins against teams such as Malaysia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Thailand and Hong Kong. However, it's unrealistic to expect wins without scoring goals," Chaubey said.

"This clearly highlights the lack of goal-scoring abilities and shortage of effective Indian strikers. A practical, collective decision is urgently required to increase match-time for the Indian strikers.

"But how can this be achieved, this calls for a joint discussion among all the stakeholders, to develop a viable and collective roadmap. One possible measure could be the gradual reduction in the number of foreign players allowed in the domestic league thereby allowing more space for positive Indian strikers..

The issue of very few Indians playing as strikers in the Indian Super League -- from which most of the national team players are selected -- has been debated and brought to notice by successive coaches and former players.

Asked if the restriction in the number of foreigners in the ISL teams can be implemented from the upcoming season, Chaubey, however, said the AIFF cannot force a decision on the stakeholders.

"All the stakeholders will have to decided collectively. The AIFF cannot take the decision alone..

Chaubey was also not forthcoming on the speculation that incumbent head coach is on his way out after the 0-1 defeat to Hong Kong.

"Manolo is one of the longest serving foreign coaches in Indian football. Over the past six years, he has managed multiple Indian clubs and secured trophies, including the Super Cup and the ISL Cup.

"He understands Indian football, including the strength and weakness of the Indian players, as well as the opportunities and challenges within the Indian football ecosystem. He is better compared to others..

On whether Marquez will continue or not, Chaubey said, "We have an executive committee meeting on June 29. We will discuss this matter internally among the committee members and we will also take the opinion of the members of the AIFF Technical Committee also..

A presentation was also made on the winning percentages and number of goals of the national team under Stephen Constantine, Igor Stimac and Marquez.

Under Constantine, the goals scored were 1.64 per match and win percentage of 57. The corresponding figures for Stimac is 1.01 and 35. Marquez's stint so far scored the lowest of 0.75 goals per game and win percentage of just 13.

According to the presentation, none of the Indian strikers under the three head coaches got regular minutes as centre forward in their clubs. After playing with the clubs, they have to play in different positions while turning up for the national team.

"It is very difficult for a player to play 11 months to play in a particular position and three days later while playing for the national team shifted to another position. I think Indian football is lacking there.

"We have not generated positive strikers in the last 10 years. We obviously appreciate Sunil Chhetri's effort of being so sincere, dedicated and fit at the age of 40, but as a nation we also need to see the supply of more forwards.

Chaubey also re-iterated India's bid to host the 2031 AFC Asian Cup. In April, the AIFF had announced that it has submitted the country's 'Expression of Interest (EoI)' to host the 2031 Asian Cup before the deadline of March 31.

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AIFF has contacted OCI player.

======================= Currently, only Indian passport-holders can represent the country, but the sports ministry has recently indicated that it is willing to review a 2008 policy.

"We formed a task force on this matter in August 2023 and thereafter we had several meetings. We have contacted 33 OCI players across the world," Chaubey said.

"AIFF is aligned with the law of the land, but it is actively involved in securing OCI players. Many countries ranked below India have adopted the policy to allow naturalised citizens. We have discussed how countries like Hong Kong, Indonesia and Bangladesh doing well (because of naturalised players)..

Elaborating further, he said, "It's a process, a systematic change is not possible. In 2008, OCI players were barred from playing for India. Our coaches had said what if India allows OCI players to play for the country. The previous regime also tried and they could not do it. Perhaps the situation was different." "I am also trying, taking it forward. But even if there is a list of 300 OCI players, they have to be eligible to play for India. Only then, the role of technical committee come in.

"To make matter simple, we have made a list of such players and when we get the OCI card we will give to them and select them by sitting with the head coach." PTI PDS KHS PDS KHS

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Topics mentioned in this article

India Kalyan Chaubey Sunil Chhetri Football