KOLKATA: Bhaichung Bhutia’s stint as the chairman of All India Football Federation’s (AIFF’s) technical committee ended earlier this month. The ‘Sikkimese Sniper’, as he was known during his playing days, was in the city on Tuesday.
TOI caught up with India’s former football captain for an exclusive interview during which he reflected on a wide range of issues pertaining to Indian football.
More than my stint as technical committee chairman, I enjoyed my role as an advisor which gave more opportunities to meet people and discuss with them. During my stint, the technical committee met only three or four times. The last time we met was to pick Stephen (Constantine) as the India coach. Looking back, when I joined the technical committee, India’s Fifa ranking was 160-plus. We have risen to No 132 since, which is a good sign.
Ideally, the technical committee should include just three members – two technical persons, preferably former footballers, and the technical director. The national coaches – at senior and age-group levels – should have regular interactions with the committee. If any coach has technical issues he can’t go over to AIFF officials because they don’t have the required technical knowledge. It’s also important that national-level coaches have regular discussions with the committee. This is not happening. The lack of communication between the coach and technical committee was one of the main reasons that led to the sacking of Nicolai Adam (U-17 coach).
I am not sure about the merger. That is AIFF’s call. The initial proposal was to make ISL the top league of the country but there was no official talk of a merger. Under the proposal, seven months of ISL was supposed to be followed by seven months of I-League, which would be the second-tier event. However, in my opinion, whatever shape it takes, there has to be relegation and promotion of teams from one tier to the other down the line. If there is no promotion and relegation, it will drive away the potential sponsors and kill the competitive element of the league.
I don’t know in what capacity East Bengal and Mohun Bagan will join the new league. They have history and a massive fan-following. But they also need to change with time. I want ISL to succeed, but not at the cost of Indian football.