With only eight months left before India hosts the FIFA Under-17 World Cup, an unusual turn of events this week has threatened to derail the country’s own challenge in the tournament.
First, let’s lay out what we know about the situation. On January 24, Praful Patel, the President of the All India Football Federation, had asked German coach Nicolai Adam,in charge of India’s U-17 national team, to resign from his post.
According to the Hindustan Times, Patel was prompted to do so after 21 national team players had submitted a letter accusing Adam and his assistant, Etibar Nizami Ibrahimov, of physical abuse. AIFF General Secretary Kushal Das confirmed this to the Indian Express two days later.
AIFF was left with no choice
Other reports stated that players had submitted a written complaint through their parents. However, Scroll.in sources can confirm that the pivotal letter which decided Adam’s fate was handed directly to Patel by the players, several of whom were in tears at the time.
TheTimes of India further reported that the German coach remains firm in his stance that he will not resign and is understood to be “perplexed” by the complaint. As per The New Indian Express, the coach’s abuse is understood to have been more verbal than physical.
Adam’s resignation – as opposed to him being sacked – is important for the AIFF and the Sports Authority of India since there is a huge severance pay at stake. “Compensation is the only issue remaining to be sorted,” an AIFF official told Scroll. “There’s no way back for the coach. We all must move on and do so quickly.”
An unprecedented situation
The official also revealed to Scroll two instances of abuse that had come to light during the players’ time in Russia, where the team had flown to take part in the Granatkin Memorial Cup – an annual youth football tournament. One player was harshly pushed and shoved by the assistant coach, while another was forced to play through the pain against his will after being asked to consume tablets by a new physio who Adam had hired in Russia.
Former India skipper Bhaichung Bhutia, who is also the chairman of the AIFF’s Technical Committee, had naturally played down the situation when the news broke. “When a coach tries hard, there is bound to be some heartburn,” he told HT.
But where do you draw the line, especially when the futures of young players are at stake? They must be allowed to enjoy the game at this age, not suffer and be stretched beyond their limits under the burden of a coach or a country’s expectations of them.
Bhutia also mentioned that “these things are not uncommon in sport”. A player-coach fallout is indeed not something that is unheard of, but an entire squad of players revolting against their coach? All of them below the age of 17 too? That is an unprecedented situation – and it would remain one whether it plays out in India or in any other part of the world.
AIFF had no choice but to show Adam the door. When the matter first surfaced, fingers were instantly pointed towards the officials for another damaging decision – such are the approval ratings of the federation. But as more information flowed in, it had become clear that the AIFF could seek only one course of action.
Patel and Co would have dearly loved to avoid this situation at any cost – there is simply too much at stake here. Hosting the Under-17 World Cup, under the watchful eyes of FIFA, is a full-fledged government project with the Prime Minister too underlining its importance.A lot of time and money has been invested in this project – and that includes Adam and his plans. Bad publicity is only trivial in comparison.
The World Cup mission, it could be said, has two broad elements: readying the infrastructure and readying a competitive home team. While the former has been on track, and FIFA has approved of its progress, the latter has now hit a huge roadblock. The hunt for a new coach will likely be done in haste and the new coach will only serve as a makeshift solution.
Did Adam unknowingly cross a line?
Adam had been the U-17 coach since early 2015 and the current team was his own selection. While results were not spectacular, there had been plenty of encouragement. It must be noted that Adam was fully invested in this team – to such an extent that he did not let his father’s demise come in the way of his coaching duties ahead of last year’s Asian U-16 championship. His reputation as a coach was firmly tied to India’s World Cup performance.
On several occasions, he had mentioned that his boys were “physically weaker”(which, as per him, contributed to their downfall) and that the team needed “taller, stronger and older” players. It would not be improbable to speculate here that in his quest to harden the Indian boys both mentally and physically, Adam and his staff unknowingly crossed the line.
What of the young players though? Rebelling against authority is not considered a natural trait in Indians. After speaking to industry professionals on the matter, there is consensus over the view that the level of abuse must have been really serious for it to have crossed the players’ breaking point. They would have summoned all of their courage to protest against it. Here, the unity in the squad at least is heartening – even if it is little consolation during this entire saga.
These players, we must keep in mind, are already stretched emotionally. They are young and they’re all going to play in a FIFA World Cup in a little over eight months. How many Indians have represented the country in a football World Cup? Zero.
They will be the first ever. They will be creating history. And they will do so playing at home where folks are looking towards them to “inspire a generation” or be the “catalyst for change”. At the age of 17, this is simply unimaginable pressure.
You can only hope that the players will recoup from the current saga and a suitable new coach can be found for them as soon as possible – and someone who gets the best out of them. After two years of proper planning, time is ticking again on Indian football’s mission 2017.
Akarsh Sharma is a New Delhi-based writer who contributes to various publications. His work is collated on akarshsharma.com and he occasionally tweets here.