The All India Football Federation (AIFF), the governing body of football in India, announced on Monday the appointment of Santosh Kashyap as the head coach of the senior women’s team. Kashyap is set to take over from Chaoba Devi, whose contract was not extended by the AIFF following poor outcomes in the games against Myanmar and the matches in the Turkish Women’s Cup.
This move by the federation has left fans, journalists, and every stakeholder in the ecosystem asking: were there no better coaches available?
The question further arises – if the AIFF was so concerned about the team’s underperformance, wouldn’t they look for a significant upgrade as the coach of the national women’s team? If the AIFF Technical Committee believes that a person who has never coached a women’s team in his career is an upgrade, then God bless Indian football.
Let us set that aspect aside and look at the bigger picture. Here is a mind-boggling statistic: Santosh Kashyap, in his managerial career spanning over a decade, boasts a winning percentage of just 27.62% while managing senior teams. A bit too high, right?
Let us forget that too. Up until this moment, Santosh Kashyap was serving as the Head of Youth Development at Odisha FC. Under his watchful leadership, players of Odisha FC were disqualified by the AIFF for age fraud, according to reports. With so many controversies surrounding him, why was he still chosen?Were there no alternatives available among Indian coaches, especially those who have worked in Indian women’s football? Even for a layman, it is common knowledge that men’s and women’s football are different. So, how can a committee of experts choose a person who does not come from a relevant background?
Were there truly no coaches with experience in women’s football in the country? The Indian Women’s League (IWL) has seven teams, each led by coaches who have worked with the players throughout the year and know them inside out. Why were none of these coaches interviewed (excluding Chaoba, of course)?Indian Football, it is far from ideal.
Maybe the technical committee believes that Santosh Kashyap’s AFC Pro License outweighs the qualifications of other coaches in the league, who hold only an A License. Perhaps this is the “meritocracy” that the federation envisions among Indian coaches.
Indian coaches already face limited opportunities, as clubs often prefer overseas coaches in the men’s game. The few spots available for Indian coaches in the national setup are frequently given to those with no significant achievements in their careers.
Santosh Kashyap is not the only example of questionable appointments by the AIFF. Let’s discuss Ranjan Chaudhari. He was put in charge of the U-20 team, and the less said about his tactics and the drama in the camp, the better. Under Chaudhari’s stewardship, India lost the SAFF Finals to Bangladesh and barely managed to win against other opponents.
Given India’s substantial investment in grassroots football, the country is far ahead of other SAFF nations. In an ideal scenario, a coach would be reprimanded or even sacked for such poor performances. However, in Indian football, the opposite seems to happen. Despite the setbacks, no action was taken against Chaudhari. Instead, he has now been appointed as the head coach of the U-20 team that will compete in the I-League in the upcoming season. Every corporate employee in India would probably relate to this situation, as I can attest from my own experience in the corporate world.
Indian Football: Forward Together, Everyone.
Moral of the story: There is no accountability in Indian football. The AIFF appoints their chosen coaches regardless of their performances, while Indian football fans lose their minds over the national team’s losses.
The harsh reality is that there is no meritocracy for coaches who achieve results with the limited opportunities they get. The ecosystem in India does not strive to improve and continues to repeat this vicious cycle.
If the people at the top of the AIFF genuinely care about football, then it is high time to change this lazy and unmerited approach. For that to happen, change must start from the top. If the house is in order, the organization would embrace challenges rather than ignore them.
In recent times, Indian football has lacked leaders who can perform the bare minimum to move the game forward amidst everything that is happening is far from ideal
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