Indian Football: New national team head coach to be appointed on May 9; Stadiums for 2020 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup finalized, and much more!

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Welcome to another edition of the Indian football news roundup. Today, we will talk about the four candidates shortlisted by the AIFF for the national team head coach job, stadiums which will host the 2020 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, and Mohun Bagan eyeing a new foreign coach for the 2019-20 season.

AIFF shortlists four names for the head coach position; Albert Roca still the favorite

Albert Roca is the favorite to take over the reins from Stephen Constantine
Albert Roca is the favorite to take over the reins from Stephen Constantine

The AIFF Technical Committee has shortlisted four names for the head coach position of the senior national team, with the final name to be announced on May 9. The four revered personalities who are eyeing the lucrative position are Albert Roca, Igor Stimac, Hakan Ericson, and Lee Min-Sung.

The Technical Committee will interview the four candidates and decide the man to take over the mantle based on their roadmap to develop Indian football. Albert Roca has previously been at the helm of Bengaluru FC and led them to the finals of the AFC Cup and the Indian Super League and won the Federation Cup and Super Cup with them. He remains the front-runner.

Igor Stimac, on the other hand, was a part of the Croatian football team as a player that finished third in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He was even the head coach of the Croatian national team but was shown the door unceremoniously in 2013. He also coached clubs in Asia like Iran’s Sepahan and Qatar’s Al-Shahania.

Hakan Ericson coached Sweden’s national team briefly in 2016. He was in charge of the Swedish Olympic team which held Colombia but lost to Nigeria and Japan in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Under his tutelage, the Sweden U-21 team also won the UEFA U-21 European Championships in 2015.

Lee Min-Sung represented South Korea in the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup and is nothing short of an icon in the Far East country. As a manager, he previously helmed K-League club Jeonnam Dragons and is currently the assistant manager of the Korean U-23 team since 2018.

2020 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup: Bhubaneswar, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Delhi to host the biennial extravaganza

The AIFF has finalized the four cities which will play host to the 2020 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, leaving Goa and Kochi surprisingly out. They are Bhubaneswar, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Delhi but the official announcement is yet to be made.

A total of 16 teams, including India, will compete in the biennial extravaganza, the dates of which are yet to be announced. The 16 teams will be divided into four groups of four teams each, with the top two teams advancing to the quarterfinals.

The four cities will host each of the four groups, with India set to play in New Delhi.

Mohun Bagan News: Mariners to appoint a new foreign coach for the 2019-20 season

Mohun Bagan are all set to rope in a foreign coach, with their official website shortlisting five names for the job. Khalid Jamil took over the reins of the team midway through the season but couldn’t guide them to a top-four finish.

“Mohun Bagan is all set to appoint a foreign coach for the upcoming football season 2019-20. The list of probable candidates includes coaches who have previously worked in India and also has fresh profiles of Spanish coaches having vast experiences in Spanish and European Football. The Club management will evaluate the 5 shortlisted profiles (3-Previously worked in India & 2 fresh profiles) and finalize the name of the Head Coach by next week,” read the official statement.

The three previously worked names are Fernando Valera, Karim Bencherifa and Paulo Menezes, with Oscar Cano and Paulo Menezes being the fresh final names. Mohun Bagan fans can only cross their fingers until the management names the new head coach.