No more experiments: India screams for a decisive path after the Manolo mishap

India Today

9 hours ago

All good things come to an end. But Manolo Marquez's stint as India head coach? That never quite got going.Eleven months, eight matches, and just one win — against the Maldives in a friendly — was all it took for the AIFF to pull the plug on July 2. Officially, it was a 'mutual decision,' but let's be honest: the clock had been ticking since that 1-0 defeat to Hong Kong China in the Asian Cup qualifiers.advertisementRight now, the national team's situation looks like the footballing equivalent of a power cut: no spark, no direction, and no goals in three games. Dead last in their AFC Asia Cup Qualifiers group and losing to a side ranked 153rd in the world, India's big coaching experiment with Marquez — juggling club and country — has ended the way most bad ideas do. With regret and a long to-do list.
Two jobs, one man, zero clarity
From day one, Marquez's appointment was a head-scratcher. The man was coaching both FC Goa and the Indian national team at the same time. It was football's version of 'two jobs, one confused calendar,' and frankly, if it weren't tragic, it might've made a cracking Netflix docuseries. Managing a club like FC Goa is already a 24/7 hustle: training, matchdays, video analysis, team management. Rinse and repeat. Add a national team to the mix, and you've got chaos with an official stamp.What India got was a part-time national coach for a full-time national problem. There were no consistent camps, no clear tactical direction, and definitely no continuity. By the time Marquez swapped his FC Goa cap for the Blue Tigers tracksuit, he was met with a team that looked completely lost. No rhythm, no identity, and certainly no clue in the final third.One of the biggest red flags was his complete disregard for the I-League. While some of India's most promising players have come through that route, Marquez's selections stuck firmly within the ISL bubble. If you weren't in the glitz and lights of the top division, you basically didn't exist. That kind of tunnel vision cost India dearly, both in terms of squad depth and grassroots growth.In a last-gasp effort to fix the attacking drought, Marquez even convinced a 40-year-old Sunil Chhetri to come out of international retirement. And yes, while Chhetri remains a clinical finisher and a legend of the game, no country can sustainably depend on a veteran to save them every time the wheels fall off. It was a band-aid over a system that needed surgery.
What next? The Khalid Jamil-sized solutionWith Marquez gone, the AIFF says it will soon advertise for a new coach. But India doesn't need another name — it needs a system. This isn't about a fancy resume or foreign flair. It's about understanding Indian football as it exists: layered, uneven, but brimming with raw talent.Antonio Lopez Habas once showed interest — a serial winner in the ISL and now coaching Inter Kashi in the I-League. But even as proven names float around, India has had a history of letting go of those who understood the domestic scene.Take Ashley Westwood, for example. A tactically astute coach, he gained deep experience in Indian football through stints at Bengaluru FC and others — and earned consistent praise for his structured, detail-oriented approach. So what did Indian football do? Let him go. What happened next? Westwood was roped in by Hong Kong. And what happened after that? He returned to beat India in the AFC qualifiers. Now that is a hard one to bite.But if India wants someone truly embedded in the local ecosystem, look no further than Khalid Jamil. He's coached teams across divisions, built underdog squads, and knows what it means to work with Indian talent — not around them. No drama, just honest football. That's the kind of blueprint India desperately needs.advertisementRebuilding intent among the Blue TigersThere's been growing chatter about how players seem more alive in ISL colours than when donning the national jersey. And honestly, it's not a motivation problem. It's a system problem. When there's no consistent vision or identity, it's hard to build pride or urgency around the shirt. This is where a coach like Jamil stands out. He builds teams, not around individual brilliance, but around collective intent, discipline, and structure.Under the right manager, India could stop being a team that plays by reaction and start being one that plays with purpose.Manolo Marquez's departure shouldn't just mark the end of a disappointing tenure. It should force Indian football to stop repeating old mistakes: outsourcing identity, sidelining local leagues, and relying on short-term flashes. This is a reset moment. The to-do list is long, but so is the potential.No more borrowed time. No more half-measures. Indian football needs a coach, a system, and a plan. In that exact order.- Ends