Stimac, whose contract runs until June 2026, had previously stated in March that he would resign if India did not reach the third round. However, Stimac was unavailable for comment while traveling home on Wednesday, as he and the players are now on holiday.
“The confidence and the positive attitude the team displayed have made him feel that he should continue for now,” the official, requesting anonymity, told HT.
It remains uncertain whether Stimac will remain in charge for the tournament. If AIFF decides to remove Stimac, it may have to pay approximately ₹3 crore ($360,000) as a severance package, a significant amount for a federation that has reduced its competitions budget this year. An AIFF official mentioned that the technical committee’s input would be considered, and a golden handshake is possible, but for now, Stimac remains in his position. In the match against Qatar, Youssef Aymen equalized in the 73rd minute after Alhashmi Mohialdin pulled the ball back from what appeared to be over the goalline.
At the post-match press conference in Doha, Stimac said the result was an injustice to his players and that India “should have scored three in the first half to kill the game definitely. But there is something which is missing in Indian football, and that’s clinical reactions inside the box.”
Kalyan Chaubey, the president of the All India Football Federation (AIFF), informed that AIFF plans to host a three-nation tournament in September as part of its commitment to utilizing FIFA windows for both the men’s and women’s teams.
“While referring to Qatar’s equaliser, Stimac also pointed out how a goal was denied against Malaysia (Merdeka Tournament) and a dubious penalty awarded to Iraq in the King’s Cup,” said the India official mentioned above.
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