Manolo Marquez and the All Indian Football Federation (AIFF) mutually parted ways on Wednesday.
This comes after the Blue Tigers fell to 0-1 loss against Hong Kong on June 10 in their 2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers campaign.
“I still think that India have possibilities to qualify. Obviously, we are sad. The dressing room is like a funeral. But we’re still in the fight,” the Spaniard had said after the defeat.
Under his tenure, India played eight matches and secured only one victory — a 3-0 win over the Maldives in a friendly in March.
Marquez, who guided Hyderabad FC to the Indian Super League (ISL) title in 2022 and won the Super Cup with FC Goa this year, took charge of the national team in June 2024.
The Spaniard had earlier voiced his frustration with Indian football after a goalless draw against Bangladesh in March — a team now ranked 56 places below India in the FIFA rankings.
“Practically I don’t want to speak much. I am very angry, disappointed with everyone. I do not have words for this poor performance,” Marquez had said after the match.
“Maybe this is the reality of Indian football, and the positive is that we didn’t concede a single goal with the chances they created.”
The state of Indian football has declined over the past year, marked by a dismal performance at the AFC Asian Cup in Qatar last year, where the team exited in the group stage after losing all its matches.
India, which was ranked 99th in the FIFA rankings in July 2023, has now dropped to 127th, with no wins in competitive football since November 2023. The team’s last victory came against Kuwait under former head coach Igor Stimac, whom Marquez replaced.
Content Source: sportstar.thehindu.com