After Stephen Constantine’s sacking as the national team head coach, the AIFF had shortlisted multiple managers to be his successor. Out of the four names on the final shortlist, Croatian Igor Stimac was chosen as head coach of the Indian Football Team. The committee, therefore, rejected names like Albert Roca, Hakan Ericson, and Lee Min-Sung. With Igor Stimac currently under massive pressure from the Indian fans due to the team’s mediocrity under him, we look at the other three shortlisted managers and where they are now.
Hakan Ericson
Hakan Ericson, the former Sweden U21 manager who lost out on the Indian job, has since been appointed head coach of the Faroe Islands National Team. Under Ericson’s leadership, the Faroe Islands team has made some positive strides since Lars Olsen stepped down.
Under Olsen, Faroe Islands had lost 12 of their last 15 matches, conceding 39 goals and scoring only six times. Given the current squad, Ericson has led the team to 4 wins and three draws in the 13 matches he has managed, with losses against teams like Denmark, Austria, and Scotland. Additionally, they are undefeated in the Nations League at the moment.
Albert Roca
The former Bengaluru FC head coach was one of the shortlisted coaches for the Indian Football Team. However, it turned out that the board passed over Roca, who subsequently joined Hyderabad FC as their new coach for 20/21 ISL. He was only with the club for a short time, as he quit before the season began to join Barcelona. In light of Koeman’s appointment at Barca, the Dutch coach wanted Roca back as the fitness coach and the lucrative offer was too good to refuse. The club sought to remodel its technical staff through Roca’s appointment.
Based on Spanish media reports, Barca is currently delighted with Roca’s efforts so far. Ousmane Dembele’s rehabilitation has been facilitated through Roca’s involvement, and he has contributed significantly to the improvement of his performances
Lee Min Sung
Lee Min Sung was the assistant coach of the South Korean U23 team when he was rejected as the Indian team head coach. Afterwards, Lee Min Sung was appointed manager of Daejeon Hana Citizen, a team in K-League Division 2. After 17 matches, Daejeon sits at No.4 in the league table, guaranteeing a promotion playoff spot. The Korean club has scored 22 goals under Lee Min Sung but at the same time have conceded more than 20 goals.
The team has won 8 and drawn 4 of the 19 matches so far under Lee and has had a positive start to the season. After losing in the semi-finals of last season’s promotion race, Daejeon will look to clinch promotion this time around under Lee Min Sung.
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