I'll leave if I don't take India to third round of FIFA WC Qualifiers, claims Igor Stimac

India boss Igor Stimac is demanding more effort from his players.

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India will hope to pick up their first win of 2024 when they host Afghanistan in the FIFA World Cup 2026 and AFC Asian Cup 2027 joint-qualifiers Round 2 clash at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium, Guwahati on March 26. The Blue Tigers were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw in the reverse fixture and will aim to finally get one over the Lions of Khorasan on home turf. Head coach Igor Stimac and captain Sunil Chhetri addressed the media on Monday ahead of the game.

Hopeful of better performance against Afghanistan

Despite the disappointing result in Saudi Arabia, Igor Stimac is hopeful that his side can get the win in the upcoming clash to make things easier before the next two qualifiers in June. Ahead of the game, he explained, “We were disappointed with the result against Afghanistan because we started off well, but realistically it was difficult to expect the players to shine with a few days of work and so much travel. But, we need to try to make things right here. How good it’ll work we’ll see, but we’ll do our best definitely.

“We are in a good position holding the second spot in the group which will take us to the third round of the qualifiers and tomorrow’s result will not change that. The final result will come against Kuwait in the game that’ll be played in Kolkata.

“The boys who will come out tomorrow will do their best and I hope we get a huge crowd here in Guwahati. I remember playing against Oman here and the Afghanistan team that played against us were way better than the one that lost to Qatar and Kuwait. They had a lengthy training session and that helped their performance,” he added.

“Ranking means nothing. If you remember how well we handled Australia for 60 minutes before one silly mistake allowed them to take the lead. We are working, we are focused on tomorrow’s game and we’ll try to do our best. The draw is the same as a loss for us, a draw and loss will mean we need to defeat Kuwait here in June. If we win, then a draw against Kuwait will be enough. So we’ll try to do our best to make it easier for us in June. But, I promised already that we’ll take India to the third round of qualifiers. The team is going to fight against Kuwait and Qatar in June and tomorrow we’ll do everything to win,” he further quipped.

India’s goalscoring problem and Afghanistan’s style

When asked about India’s persistent goalscoring issues and whether he might change his attacking formula for this game, the mentor remarked, “Before I came here, the scoring problem was haunting us and I remember mentioning about improving the competition in the league for the forward places. Against Afghanistan, we had the best Indian striking force upfront, we also had our chances which we couldn’t execute. If Manvir (Singh) had scored early on, the game would’ve drastically changed, but we didn’t score and the game went as it went.

“The positive thing about the last game is the clean-sheet, it’s the second away qualifier where we got a clean-sheet and that tells about our stability and defensive shape. We didn’t give Afghanistan one clear-cut chance; once they got in behind but the player missed the chance. Obviously, I can’t help our players in the final third – it’s up to the player to show the quality to do what they can in certain situations. Mostly, with us, we can help the players and help organize their game in the first and second third – beyond that it’s up to them.

“It’s not easy because as you can see, they are not playing in these crucial positions in their clubs; apart from (Sunil) Chhetri this season, no one else is there. (Lallianzuala) Chhangte is playing on the right wing, Vikram (Pratap Singh) is playing on the left wing and Manvir is playing as a full-back in a three-at-the-back system. It’s not possible to make that change in 3-4 days time. We’ll try to put our best striking force, we’ll try to change a few things and need the fresh legs. Our attackers need to focus on controlling the game from the first minute. We might introduce new technical players and let’s see where we go from there,” the Croatian boss added.

Igor Stimac was not surprised to see Afghanistan take a backseat against India and hit them on the break, attributing it to many of their players playing in Europe – something he wants his Indian boys to follow too. He exclaimed, “It didn’t surprise me (playing style). We expected that and you could see we were also cautious about that. They only have 3-4 players who still play in the Afghanistan league, the rest of them all play in Europe. You can notice the pace, the movement and passing quality. That’s what good competitions do to a player. I’m not saying that because I got to know it yesterday, I know that for a long time. I’d love to see our players go abroad and enjoy more competitive football, some are still young and should have the hunger to go abroad and challenge themselves.”

Issues in midfield

When questioned on the potential worries about India being overrun in midfield at times and Afghanistan passing through the central areas too easily, the tactician stated, “We are working with players who will provide us stability and passing control. As you know, we have Jeakson (Singh) and Anwar (Ali) still not at their best and they are two very important players for us. Suresh (Singh) is still not at his top, he is suffering from a drop of form recently and we aren’t getting too much from our full-backs in recent games. We need more confidence there. I tell my players that I’ll never blame them if you make mistakes, but I’ll get so angry if you don’t try.

“We are not trying enough, I want them to try and make mistakes and then run back to chase the ball again. Footballers in midfield who can provide us stability in the game are important. We took certain risks with our formation in the last game and there were situations in the game where Afghanistan openly went past the central line which isn’t good. We need our stability back and hopefully that will happen,” he claimed.

Stimac’s vow for FIFA World Cup Qualifiers Third Round Bid

Igor Stimac also made a bold claim about potentially resigning from his role as India’s head coach if his team are unable to qualify for the third round of the World Cup Qualifiers. He explained, “There was a time when my situation with the AIFF was that I would be extending my contract after the Asian Cup, but I didn’t want that situation. I wanted an immediate meeting with the AIFF officials knowing very well what was going to happen. I didn’t want to put myself in such a position after the Asian Cup, because being away and that we wouldn’t get enough time to prepare for the cup, I was ready to accept suffering, defeats and abuse to get to June and prove everyone once again where we’d go in the next phase of our work.

“My contract runs until 2026, so whoever wants to abuse me or the players, if they feel better about that, then I can’t help them. We know very well where we’ll go and how we will get there. If it takes suffering tomorrow also, we’ll accept it. At the end of every suffering comes a light out of the tunnel that will bring happiness. I know that we are learning from each defeats, each bad or good performances. We are a team which is in a creating phase, a team that is seeing some players playing their last days and the new boys entering the team. We have a core base of 15-16 players and there are 10 positions that will be changing based on performances. As I told the media and the fans from my very first day – if we are not all together in this, then we are not helping each other.

“Once again, I’m asking for unity, understanding and patience. We enter the second phase of our work, I said that never mind the contract – if I don’t take India to the third round of the World Cup Qualifiers – then I will leave – with my pride, with honour and everything that was done in my five years. If we qualify and there is plenty of work to be done here – 10 more games to enjoy and five at home – then you can understand what kind of excitement that brings to us,” he also detailed.

Lack of intensity in performances

When asked about a possible lack of intensity in India’s performances in recent months, Igor Stimac reverted, “Something that isn’t helping the ISL coaches, that doesn’t help me, is the schedule and competition’s fixtures. The ISL coaches don’t have time to work with the players, they are just training and playing games. That is why the players are exposed to extreme injuries, which we see every day. The players who are in need of work to improve their individual skills and basic skills are increased, then we have a huge problem. That’s the point we need to discuss and change. The coaches need to be awarded enough time to prepare a team for the ISL season.

“Six weeks of time is needed, but not six weeks where you won’t have enough time or facilities for training – that can only disrupt the training process for a team. This is something all stakeholders must discuss, but this isn’t the time to do that. I’d remind you that in my four-year tenure, we have had three long camps.

“I stayed here because promises were made for the future and the promise is simple that everyone will sit down at the end of this season to ensure the next season’s calendar can be done and everyone can be satisfied. We don’t have disruptions for the next year with Asian Games or anything in between, so the calendar will be created in a way that the national team gets seven extra days, apart from the five that is given to us in the FIFA window, so we can have 12 days prior to a FIFA window match. June is there for us to organize longer camps for those players who play well in the ISL and we can see some players from the I-League also, so that they can fulfill their dreams to play for the national team,” he also added.

No blame on injuries and style of play

Igor Stimac refused to blame injuries for India’s issues, stating, “Injuries are always a concern, but you can’t avoid it. We need to think about those who are available and not those who are missing. We have some players playing in different positions than the ones they made sure they have in the national team, which isn’t helping. So, this is resulting in their forms being dropped.”

When asked about potentially changing his style of play for the Blues Tigers, the Croatian boss said, “Football is changing on a daily basis, evolution is happening. New things, new methods, new playing styles and new philosophies are coming. We need to follow that. My philosophy that will keep going forever is that we follow the plans, we follow our opponents, we follow what is needed. Obviously, when you are playing against weaker opponents, you’ll have a more attacking style and try to control the game and put as much pressure as possible. When you play against far better teams, you need to organize the defensive shape in a way so as to not get hurt too much.”

Patience with Vikram Pratap Singh

Finally, Igor Stimac asked for patience over the development of Vikram Pratap Singh when discussing his best role for India. He said, “Vikram Partap, for example, is scoring some nice goals in the ISL and I’m happy with his hunger, attitude and commitment. Probably he’ll be the one who will keep enjoying his game in the national team. We need to work it out. Chhangte is playing centrally for Mumbai and Vikram is on the left. I’ll ask my players about this about where they feel the best. We’ll need to share opinions and thoughts and discuss points that is needed for the team.

“Each one of them must understand that everyone needs to push everyone to make the team better and not themselves better. We need to try to make it work so that the team works, it’s not important who scores at the end of the day. It won’t be easy for Vikrat to score at an international game, be patient with him. Don’t hunt him out if he doesn’t score in two or three games. His time will come,” he finished.

Sunil Chhetri Comments

Sunil Chhetri talked about the recent draw against Afghanistan. “I think in the first half we should’ve taken a few chances, it doesn’t matter if we’re playing away or home. Those chances don’t come easily. As the game progressed, it became more open and we started getting dominant. As the game went on, the gaps between us increased and we had a late chance where Subhasish Bose could’ve scored. It became a case of them attacking and then us attacking, that is something we don’t like. We don’t like being attacked.”

Chhetri also praised the impressive atmosphere that the Indian football fans can create anywhere the national team plays, saying, “We felt like we’re in the home ground against Afghanistan. I’m not sure about the numbers, but 60-70% of the ground was filled with our supporters. Wherever we go, we Indians get a lot of support. We know that it’ll be a different atmosphere at our own home and we really want to try to get the win. All the boys are working to make things right in the next game.”

Finally, the India captain also urged the younger players to not let the criticism on social media affect their mindset. He explained, “I try to tell them not to feel it. You can see the effect on a few of them. Because of the popularity of social media, you cannot ignore the fact that people speak and have opinions. People are watching a game and are putting the time on you, so they will have opinions.

“The players need to work to do their best on the pitch, some days you’ll win, sometimes you’ll not and that is how it goes. We shouldn’t put too much attention on the opinions, it’s not that it doesn’t matter, but it never helps. Even if someone is saying good things about you, it never helps. I always tell youngsters to stay away from social media, there are multiple ways in which the fans try to convey how they feel about the players. Say anything you want, but I hope the fans don’t abuse,” he added.

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