New Delhi: Over 72 hours after announcing Khalid Jamil as its senior men’s national team head coach, the All India Football Federation is yet to reach an agreement with him over terms and conditions of his contract.
Jamil was picked without being interviewed from a shortlist of three names including Briton Stephen Constantine and Slovak Stefan Tarkovic, with an announcement made after an executive committee meeting on August 1.
But duration of the stint, as well as Jamil’s comments were conspicuously absent from AIFF’s communique, even though names of top officials and technical committee members were mentioned.
“…for the betterment of Indian football, the federation must give an opportunity to an Indian coach,” it was written in the statement.
He became the first Indian to be placed at the helm since Savio Medeira in 2012 but apart from being the home-grown option, Jamil’s significantly lesser financial demand (Rs 1.2 crore compared to around Rs 2.11 crore for the other two foreign coaches) was also a crucial factor in his appointment.
The AIFF is willing to offer him Rs 10 lakh per month as remuneration, which Jamil is agreeable to but it’s the job tenure that has emerged as the bone of contention between the two parties.
Tussle over tenure?
Like Constantine and Tarkovic, Jamil too has demanded a three-year contract, which the AIFF has been coy to offer so far.
At the Ex Co meeting, the AIFF had deliberated about the length of employment to be offered, with one member suggesting it to be performance-based, tied to 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification.
He suggested an initial one-year deal, along with the option of a two-year extension, should India qualify for the Asian Cup, pointing to AIFF’s stretched coffers and in line with the existing committee’s term limit.
In initial negotiations, the AIFF mooted that 1+2 option to Jamil, who hasn’t readily agreed to it, though six support staff has been agreed in principle.
Deliberations on Saturday, Sunday and Monday didn’t lead to any significant headway even as Jamil remains committed to his existing job at Jamshedpur FC, whose next match in the ongoing Durand Cup is against 1 Ladakh FC on August 8.
With two consecutive wins, JFC have already progressed to the Durand Cup quarter-finals, to be played on August 16 and 17, the final will be on August 23.
Jamil is yet to begin formal exit discussions with JFC too, even as the federation remains unable to announce his support staff, national camp dates and list of probables.
Even if a breakthrough is achieved, very little time is left for Jamil to oversee a camp before reaching Dushanbe on August 27 to begin his tenure at the CAFA Nations Cup against Tajikistan two days later.
“A camp of at least 10 days is required for the new coach to get attuned to his new environment. But how it could be achieved is a big worry now,” a person aware of the developments said.
“Negotiations are positive and is expected to wrapped up soon,” an AIFF official said.