New Delhi: The All India Football Federation (AIFF) is expected to start the hunt for a new coach once its technical committee and executive committee approve mutual termination of Manolo Marquez’s contract at its meeting on June 29. Manolo, who took over as full-time coach only on June 1 after a dual role shared with FC Goa, has informed the federation that he does not want to continue with national team duties. According to sources, the contract can be terminated only if both parties agree. “We have an executive committee meeting on June 29, where we will take a call (on Manolo’s future),” AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey told reporters in the Capital on Friday.
“Manolo Marquez is one of the longest serving foreign coaches in Indian football. Over the years, he has managed multiple clubs and won trophies, including ISL trophy and Super Cup. Compared to others, his understanding of Indian football, including strengths, weakness of Indians, as well as opportunities and challenges within the Indian ecosystem, is better.” Under Manolo, India have won just once — against lowly Maldives at home — in eight matches but even more worryingly, failed to score in the last three matches. This includes a home draw against Bangladesh and away defeats to Thailand and Hong Kong. Goalscoring has been a consistent problem and reflects in the mere seven goals that the team has scored in 15 matches since Jan 2024. India have also not won a competitive game since Nov 2023.Quiz: Who’s that IPL player?“It is unrealistic to expect wins without scoring goals. There has been a steady decline in goals being scored from 1.64 (in 2015) to 0.75 currently. While we appreciate Sunil Chhetri’s efforts at 40, as a nation we also need to ensure there was supply of more forwards in a systematic manner. “It’s difficult for wa player who has played the supporting role in the club for 11 months, to shift to the No. 9 role (in international matches). We have not had positive strikers in the last 10 years,” said Chaubey. Only Chhetri, India’s highest goalscorer, has been a constant feature in the starting lineups of the last four national team coaches: Bob Houghton, Stephen Constantine, Igor Stimac and Manolo Marquez. The AIFF is hoping it can solve the striking woes and overcome India’s wretched run of form, with the inclusion of OCI players. Chaubey said his office has contacted 33 footballers from across the world, some of whom already have the Overseas Citizen of India card, while others are being assisted by the federation. “Like all sports federations (in India), AIFF is committed to aligning with the laws of the land. Under FIFA’s framework and regulations, we are also actively exploring the possibility of securing approval for the inclusion of OCI players in the national team,” said Chaubey.
