Indian football looks to Jamil for answers

Bengaluru: Paying taxes, attending press conferences, picking squads and getting sacked are the four certainties in the life of a football manager. Khalid Ahmed Jamil, Indian team’s new boss, however, has one more -- punching above his weight. 

With shoestring budgets and no star-studded casts, Jamil has been coming up with the goods constantly in his 16-year coaching career and has earned a reputation of a fighter in the Indian footballing circles. 

From taking over a struggling Mumbai FC and keeping them in the top-flight for a prolonged period while they were in dire financial straits to scripting one of India’s greatest footballing fairytales with underdogs Aizawl FC and to being awarded the AIFF Men’s Coach of the Year twice in 2023-24 and 2024-25, Jamil has been climbing charts that no Indian coach has seen in a long time. 

And that is one of the main reasons why the stubborn, foreign coach-obsessed All India Football Federation (AIFF) has put all their eggs in the Khalid basket, which they usually don’t or haven’t done with Indian coaches over the last two decades. 

“I’m feeling very good (on his appointment), very happy,” Jamil told DH. “It's a very proud moment for me. However, it is also a big challenge. We must work as a team and strive for getting a positive result.”  

The 48-year-old also brings one thing that none of the foreign coaches over the last 13 years brought: sheer love for the badge. And for a national team that has been called out for not playing for the name in front of the shirt, taskmaster Jamil might just be the safest and best bet for picking the path forward. While change remains the only constant, every change in leadership leads to new ideas and challenges. This transition from (former coach) Manolo Marquez to Jamil suggests that India are eager to fight even with limited resources at their disposal. 

“The preparation has been good. We only had a little time but it is alright. We have picked the 23-member squad, there is a good mix of seniors and juniors. It is going to be tough, especially starting with an away game, but I’m happy with the preparation so far.”

With India now having a disciplinarian as the guiding light, the under-achieving squad will have no room for comfort zone and his ideology believes in trusting the process and not fretting over the little stuff.

“Talking about my preparation and plans, all focus is now on the first game. It is a process. We have to take it step by step. Match by match. Whatever players we have, we must concentrate on them. And the main target now is to do well in the preparatory tournament for the Qualifiers ahead.”

Jamil’s first assignment will be the CAFA Nations Cup, starting on August 29 in Tajikistan.

The AIFF usually have missed getting off at the nearest station after taking the wrong train, but perhaps this time, there is a certain sense of optimism that they have boarded the right one to reach their desired destination.