It’s not uncommon in international football for a manager to be sacked and for accusations to be thrown back and forth between them and officials. The wife of former South Korean manager Choi Kang-hee had previously accused the federation of forcing the coach to drink with officials, journalists, and sponsors, which had resulted in him suffering gastrointestinal problems. Now, according to The Guardian, the dismissal of Indian manager Igor Štimac has sparked a major controversy, with accusations being made about heart surgery and the use of astrology to select players.
On June 17, Igor Štimac, the 56-year-old Croatian manager of the Indian national team, was dismissed. After his dismissal, Štimac slammed the All India Football Federation (AIFF) claiming he was “imprisoned” and that they were only interested in appearances and not actual work. He said, “The sooner the AIFF president and the people in important positions leave, the better it will be for Indian football, these people only care if they can generate buzz on social media.”
Štimac listed a number of problems with the federation, such as his attempts to convince them that World Cup qualifiers were more important than the Asian Cup, only to be told that the federation cared more about appearances. Štimac said, “This put me under immense pressure, forcing me to have heart surgery.”
The AIFF responded by saying, “The sole purpose of his doing so is defamation. His irresponsible accusation that the All India Football Federation has caused his heart problem is just an attempt to divert from the fact that his physical condition is not fit to be a coach.”
The Guardian pointed out that the main reason for Štimac’s dismissal was poor results, with India suffering three defeats in the Asian Cup without scoring a single goal, finishing bottom of their group. In World Cup qualifying, they also failed to advance to the last 18. So what is the significance of arguing about the importance of the Asian Cup or World Cup qualifiers? Neither side achieved expectations!
Furthermore, the AIFF also accused Štimac, saying they were “shocked at his reliance on astrologers to decide player selection and team strategy”, which caused a public outcry. Štimac called this accusation a “disgrace” and said, “I rely on work, knowledge, and what I see on the training pitch to make decisions. Some people in India are trying to tarnish my work with some false accusations, but the fact is that this work has been executed perfectly.”
Currently, both Štimac and the AIFF have made legal threats and released statements of over 1500 words accusing each other. Štimac received a severance package of three months’ salary, but the two parties are still likely to end up in court. However, this drama hasn’t affected India’s search for a new manager, with reports saying that they have received 214 applications since they opened the position to public applicants.
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