The only way to fight negativity is through positivity. Fear leads to doubts and doubts lead to failure but when you stop fearing and start enjoying the process, success can’t stay away for too long – that’s the mantra India national football team coach Igor Stimac is trying to imbibe in his team as they get ready to face Kuwait on Thursday in what could be a make-or-break match.
It’s been a downhill trajectory for Indian national football team since the turn of the year. The Blue Tigers who for once had the attention of the whole country after winning the SAFF Championship in mid-2023 have been awfully out of form. Their Asian Cup journey in the beginning of the year ended with 0 goals scored and 0 points in the group stage.
In the two FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in June, against lower-ranked Afghanistan, India could only manage a single point and now stand at a point where another defeat could mean elimination.
India vs Kuwait: How Blue Tigers can book historic third round spot
But exiting at this stage after coming close to reaching the third round of qualifiers for the first time in history would not only be gut-wrenching but could do a big disservice to the national team and Indian football as a whole. Already fighting multiple battles to stay relevant in a sporting market dominated by cricket, a contemptible exit will only do that much more to push Indian football down the pecking order.
It will also be a big dent on Stimac’s CV.
Stimac came to India in 2019 after leading a highly successful career at the club and international level where he finished third in the 1998 World Cup as a player and coached the Croatian national team whatever you believe, there was clear enthusiasm after he took over.
With a high-profile coach who was well known in world media, Indian football was hoping to get out of the choppy waters and despite some challenging first few years that were exacerbated by the COVID pandemic, things started to fall in place before going downhill again.
The situation got so bad that all requests for an interview with Stimac have been shot down by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) since the Afghanistan defeat and their recent training camp in Bhubaneswar was held behind closed doors. The federation is trying to shield the team from anything they feel could promote negativity ahead of the showdown against Kuwait but inside the camp, things are on the mend.
The Sunil Chhetri press conference: A moment when time stood still and emotions ran high
With no control over the uncontrollables, the team has reverted to focussing on themselves and enjoying the process.
During a training session on Tuesday, when India’s attacking midfielder Shahal Abdul Samad was asked about any message that Sunil Chhetri, who will be retiring after the Kuwait game, might have shared with the teammates, the Mohun Bagan player’s response was just two words: “Go enjoy”.
Even Stimac, who started his tenure with the mantra of enjoying the game and making it entertaining for the fans, on the eve of the match, reaffirmed his belief in his thinking process.
“These (enjoy) are the words I have been saying to my players from the very first day. It’s only a game of football and we should enjoy it. What’s the purpose of playing it if we are not enjoying it? You know, the result is always in God’s hands. But if you are not enjoying your job, there is no purpose for doing it. We’re going there tomorrow to enjoy our job, to try to win the game, and to do everything needed to win,” he emphasised in the pre-match press conference.
And that will be very crucial for the Blue Tigers.
The defeats and disappointing results in the last few months became distressing because it wasn’t the scorelines that bothered the fans, but the manner in which it was accepted. On many occasions, without giving a proper fight . This was a far cry for a team that defeated two West Asian sides back-to-back, for the first time, in the SAFF Cup last year.
After a good run in 2023, once results started to go against them, the young team lost its way and became too negative and ineffective. But reinforcing some positivity would help pull them back to the standards they had set for themselves.
Read: With Sunil Chhetri around, there was always hope
Positivity, however, alone would not be enough to beat Kuwait who thrashed Afghanistan 4-0 since India defeated them away from home in November to raise serious hopes of reaching the third round.
Kuwait also bring a physical aspect to the game which will not be easy for India to deal with, especially in the absence of Sandesh Jhingan even if they are expected to be playing at a jam-packed Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata.
“We need to take care of these players, they don’t have their best striker. We are also without Sandesh (Jhingan). They impressed me with their last performance against Qatar, they raised their game. But I’m in absolute peace with the way our preparation has gone. It’s only a game of football and we should enjoy it. The result is always in god’s hands,” Stimac said besides highlighting that their three-week camp has the team in a top physical state.
The coach also confirmed that Gurpreet Singh Sandhu will be starting the game as the goalkeeper but the focus will be on who gets into the defence and midfield. Rahul Bheke, Anwar Ali, Subhasish Bose, Jeakson Singh and Lallianzuala Chhangte have been India’s most reliable players under Stimac and they will be expected to start again.
The striker position is going to be reserved for Chhetri who will be playing in his last match but I-league strikers Edmund Lalrindika (Inter Kashi) and David Lalhlansanga (Mohammedan Sporting) could get a few minutes and if that happens, they will become the first debutants from the second-division in five years.
But whoever gets onto the pitch, as the coach said, they need to enjoy the moments. Forget what happened in the past. That pressure and negativity have already cost the team too much. The Blue Tigers need to make Thursday memorable because not every day you get the chance to make history in World Cup qualifiers and there can’t be a better farewell for Chhetri.
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