Goal is to keep Chhetri motivated, says coach
INDIAN football head coach Igor Stimac believes that talismanic captain Sunil Chhetri is motivated enough to keep going and remains “very valuable” for guiding the national team s young players. During a recent interview, the 5-year-old Chhetri had said that he was fitter than ever and was not going away any time soon, putting to rest widespread speculation around his retirement. Asked if Chhetri could continue to play for another three or four years, Stimac said: “He is motivated enough to keep going and very valuable to our youngsters with his attitude, professionalism and a positive mindset. “We coaches are there to provide the best possible service to all our players, and do justice at the end by choosing the best or for a game.,” he added from his home in Croatia. “We are happy to have Sunil with us and we will help him stay motivated and focused on his game as long as possible.” Stimac said the recent move of the All India ootball ederation AI to restrict the number of foreign players in the Indian Super League ISL and I-League matches to four would benefit Indian football. He had earlier talked about the need to reduce the number of foreign recruits in the two leagues. “I am happy with the move . It is going to bring benefits to Indian football very soon,” said the 5 -year-old who was a part of the bron e-winning Croatian team in the 99 World Cup. Asked about the impact of introducing a lot of young players into the national team, he said, “rom the very first day we started relying on young talented players, believing that our hard work and trust in them will pay us back in the near future. I like it when I see young players getting chances in the Hero ISL and Hero I-League. That s our only way of speeding up and competing with other successful Asian football countries.” Stimac explained that the Indian Arrows project was a clear example of the AI s “good vision”. “Developing young players is mostly based and dependent on structured and professional work in football academies,” he said.