Manolo’s hard lyrics are the feelings of India, but the words will not be enough – Firstpost

Igor Stimac took the Indian football team on the verge of qualification for the third round of the FIFA World Cup qualifying for the first time, but finally failed, falling miserably at the end after having fought against the lower row teams. His team fought against weaker opponents while the underperformative players constantly in these crucial games.

“Failure” is a hard word to use, especially for those who give everything in the field. Wearing the blue jersey is the biggest privilege for a professional footballer in this country, and no one intentionally underscores. But in this case, nothing less than hard will be enough. Those who followed the Indian football team know closely how inexplicably and strongly decreased from 2023 to 2024. This crisis finally led to the exit of Stimac, which, at the end of its mandate, had lost its charisma and the ability to inspire a good performance of its players.

The wheels have turned and came Manolo Marquez – on popular demand.

Ten months after the start of work, it was his words after the Blue Tigers blew and blew in a relentless draw against Bangladesh, a team ranked 59 places below the FIFA ranking.

“I am very angry, disappointed with everyone. I have no words for this bad performance. This is not enough, maybe it is the reality of Indian football,” he said on Tuesday after a dull display of Sandesh Jhingan and Co-a performance that had to have left the crowd of almost 15,000 people in the stadium questioning their decision to present themselves.

He did not just question the quality of Indian football; He also underlined during the post-match press conference that the team’s performance against Bangladesh had made them go back at least a few steps.

Again, the coach’s ability to get the most out of his players is examined. But let’s not forget the warning – of short national camps, multiple injuries and a supply line which is not under its control.

The real question must be asked to the players and the National Football – Aiff federation.

Do players give their best, or have we too excited? Does the Federation be enough to ensure that we continue to grow as a football nation and the supply of talents of continuous quality relentlessly?

Against the Bangladesh, India could have dropped 1-0 from five seconds after the match when goalkeeper Vishal Kaith found Mojibor Jony with his pass and left the gaping goal. Fortunately, the Bangladesh midfielder was not a mood to score. Kait would commit more blunders, once forcing Subhasish Bose to make a gale backup.

Shariar Emon and Rakib Hossain had a brilliant match, defeating the Indian defenders for fun and turning to be Jhingan and Rahul Bheke nightmares.

A draw is a result which had to leave the Bangladesh team at Videoir, given the proximity several times to take the lead and how slumped India with their form, their passage and their overall intensity.

Is India always the best team in South Asia?

Most importantly, their finish has further lowered them. The Bangladesh quickly fills the gap with India, and although there seems to be little difference in the quality of the local players of the two teams, the Bangladesh had its weak moments. It was then that India should have capitalized – but they did not do it.

Liston Colaco fought hard, Farukh Choudhary also did well and Boris Singh Thangjam, Subhasish Bose and Apuia were among the few light points in India. But none of them could convert their chances. Not even Sunil Chhetri, although he obtained multiple opportunities after reversing his international retirement at 40 to help India find the bottom of the net.

This brings us back to the key question: do the players and the ecosystem of Indian football are progressing as planned? Do they improve to the rhythm that they should or do they really regress? Recent results suggest the latter. If this drop continues, forget the World Cup – even the qualifications for the Asian Cup will become a distant dream.