By Diptayan Hazra
New Delhi [India], October 13 : Former India football captain Bhaichung Bhutia has strongly criticized All India Football Federation (AIFF) President Kalyan Chaubey for his controversial remarks about Northeast players.
"It's a very, very stupid statement. He has no knowledge about football. He has never played for India, he might have played for junior India somewhere, but he has never played for the national team. His statements are very shocking, saying that Northeast players are short and not good," Bhutia expressed his disappointment and disbelief, while speaking to ANI.
Chaubey allegedly said that while players from the Northeast possess speed and skill, their shorter stature can be a disadvantage in international matches. To address this issue, he mentioned plans to recruit and develop taller players from Rajasthan.
However, Chaubey has denied making such statements about Northeast players.
Bhutia questioned Chaubey on Rajasthan players, saying, "He is looking for taller players from Rajasthan. I don't know where he got this idea from."
Earlier in 2022, Kalyan Chaubey defeated Bhaichung Bhutia for the top post of the AIFF. Chaubey, won the election 33-1, a result that was anticipated as Bhutia lacked substantial support among the 34-member voters' list composed of state association representatives.
However, Bhutia remained unconvinced and critical of Chaubey's leadership. He also mentioned another of Chaubey's claims about improving team standards by switching travel from trains to flights, suggesting this did little to address core issues.
Bhutia also criticized the process of appointing Manolo Marquez as the head coach of the national team. He compared Marquez's selection to other potential candidates like Antonio Lopez Habas, who has a successful track record in the Indian Super League (ISL), and South Korea's Park Hang-seo.
"I am not against the coach, but the process of selecting the coach is wrong. That's why I resigned from the technical committee. The technical committee's job is to select the coaches of all age groups. I was in the executive committee meeting when the President selected the coach. It was so unfortunate. I told him that it is not his job; he has a technical committee chairman under IM Vijayan. Even I am one of its members. I have been the technical committee chairman; I have selected and appointed coaches in the past. The process they are following is not right, and the other members who are not part of the technical committee are approving and selecting the coach. I said this is a completely wrong process, and that's why he did not agree with me, so I resigned. If you want to appoint the coaches in this manner, then what is the point of having a technical committee and me being a member?" Bhutia remarked.
Bhutia added, "If IM Vijayan and the technical committee felt Manolo was right, we would have still gone with him. At least we would have told him to resign from FC Goa. With the situation of Indian football right now, I think Manolo Marquez is not another six months. You would have gone with a golden handshake with FC Goa and left, and he would have given complete responsibility to the federation and the national team."
Bhutia also criticized the handling of former head coach Igor Stimac's departure, which he described as mismanaged.
"It was complete mismanagement. It was the first time a coach was sacked before the contract ended. We have to pay 4 crores to Stimac, which is a huge sum for the AIFF. He could have gone with a golden handshake with a very good compromise if it was managed properly but I blame the President and his bad management. Because of the President, we are facing a financial loss," Bhutia concluded.
These strong statements from one of India's most respected football figures highlight the growing concerns over the current administration's handling of key issues in Indian football.
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