Australian cricket great Greg Chappell has been chosen to replace Englishman Bob Houghton as coach of the Indian soccer team by the All-India Football Federation (AIFF).
Greg Chappell had expressed his desire to return to coaching an Indian team ;the AIFF responded by inviting him to take over the mantle from ousted Houghton.
AIFF general secretary, Kushal Das, said, “We need a coach who is out-spoken, enjoys the confidence of the players and who does not shy away from controversy.”
When Chappell’s lack of soccer experience was pointed out, Das replied “That is not a problem. Jose Mourinho, too, had no experience playing soccer and look what he has achieved. Besides, Indian football is the best place for Chappell to gain experience as a Socceroo.”
When asked how Chappell was selected for the job, Das said, “Chappell came highly recommended by Saurav Ganguly.”
Ganguly is known to be an avid soccer fan and a close pal of Baichung Bhutia.
Chappell is expected to be a hard task-master with not a hint of favouritism much like his predecessor.
His appointment is sure to raise the profile of the sport in the country. It is also expected that the BCCI’s largesse towards soccer will shown an exponential increase.
Sunil Chhetri has tweeted his support saying “Greg has big boots to fill but if there’s anyone who can do it , it’s him.”
(All facts and “quotes” in this article are made up, but you knew that already, didn’t you?)
Quote of the day:
The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working the moment you get up in the morning and does not stop until you get into the office. – Robert Frost
Make Time For Sports. 
Discussion
Comments are closed.