very Indian football fan worth his salt dreams of seeing his national team take on the likes of Brazil, Argentina and Germany at the FIFA World Cup. It is a dream which is brutally crushed every four years as the Indian team returns empty handed from yet another qualifying tournament.
But as he took charge of the Indian team, Spanish coach Manuel ‘Manolo’ Márquez Roca urged players, fans and the All India Football Federation (AIFF) to set their sights on a different, more fundamental target.
The 55-year-old, who has served as a manager in the La Liga – the top tier of Spanish football – apart from the Indian Super League (ISL), wants Indian players to focus on improving their overall standard rather than big ticket events such as the World Cup or Asia Cup.
“We need to improve the technical and tactical quality of our Indian players. Unless we improve our individual and collective abilities at the basic level, it is futile to think of the World Cup or the Asian Cup,” Marquez told Vidhan News.
“Once these basic issues are sorted out, we will be able to compete better at the international level and earning qualification for the World Cup will eventually become a reality,” he added.
But is the ISL the proper platform to help Indian footballers achieve these goals? The question draws a sign from the much travelled coach.
According to Marquez, the ISL has enabled Indian players to get into a comfortable cocoon that they must break in order to achieve their full potential.
“Indian players need to play in better leagues if they want to improve. You improve only if you train with and compete against those who are better than you. I would like to see Indian footballers play in Europe,” he remarked.
“Even if they don’t manage to get into the top leagues such as the Premier League or the La Liga, even the lower divisions in some of the European countries are quite competitive with high standards,” he added.
“After five years of coaching in the ISL, I believe that Indian players have a lot of potential. But they have become quite comfortable playing in the ISL. For the most part, their lives in the ISL are excellent and they lead extremely comfortable lives. Things are more challenging when you play abroad.”
Marquez, who has guided Hyderabad FC to the ISL title, asserted that Indian players need to work on improving their mental toughness along with their physical fitness and football skills.
“Technique, tactics and physical fitness are very important in football. But to be a winning team, you need to mentally strong. If you concede an early goal, you need to focus more. You still have the rest of the match to score. A positive attitude is needed in difficult situations,” Marquez said.
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The former manager of La Liga side Las Palmas will simultaneously guide ISL outfit FC Goa along with the national team. While admitting that he faces a daunting task, Marquez was confident that his passion for the game will see him through.
“it will of course be difficult, specially for the first couple of weeks as I only will have (former Team India star) Gouramangi (Singh) to help me at FC Goa. But after the other assistant coaches arrive at FC Goa, things will be a bit easier,” he said.
“The real challenge will be with the national team. We have our first match next month (against Syria, September 9). Then we have the Asian Cup qualifiers next year. It will be tough,” the Spaniard remarked as he reflected on the challenges ahead.
“But football is my passion. A more difficult task means more hard work, but it can also be more interesting.”
