'I was not a good national team coach': Manolo Marquez

MUMBAI: Manolo Marquez has admitted he was “not a good national team coach” during his brief stint with India, accepting responsibility for a disappointing run while arguing that structural issues in Indian football made the job even more difficult.In his 11 months in charge of the Indian national team, a post he left a year ago, India won one of eight matches, and it was a friendly against the low-ranked Maldives.Marquez, who is beginning his seventh season in India and his third ISL club assignment with Mumbai City FC, was blunt when asked what he learnt from his time as India coach.“I think that the results were bad. I was not a good national team coach,” he said. “When you play eight games, and you win only one, it’s not good. I called 51 players in eight games, which is too much. I never found the correct group.”The Spaniard, however, believes his record cannot be viewed in isolation. He pointed to the disparity between India and several of their Asian opponents, particularly the increasing presence of overseas-born or foreign-origin players in rival national teams.“When you don’t play with the same conditions, the opponent is very difficult,” he said.Marquez also recalled the impact of players such as Ryan Williams, who scored for India shortly after being introduced, and Hamza Choudhury, whose presence transformed Bangladesh.But the former FC Goa coach was clear that he would not use those factors to escape responsibility.“I am the first person guilty, and I don’t want to avoid responsibility,” he said. “There are a lot of factors, but one factor was that I was not the correct person in that moment.”Marquez also revealed that despite widespread reports, he had no difficulty combining his India role with his responsibilities at FC Goa, saying he had been caught between criticism that he was prioritising the club and criticism that he was not doing enough for the national team.His wider diagnosis of Indian football was equally stark. The 58-year-old believes the biggest issue lies in how players are prepared before they reach the professional level.“For me, the problem is in how they arrive. Most of them arrive without the correct knowledge in professional football,” he said.Marquez feels the gap in professionalism between Indian players and those from established football nations remains significant, pointing to nutrition, training, recovery, sleep and strength conditioning as areas that need improvement.“Obviously, the attitude to get better is there. But still, I think that we need to improve in some very important aspects. I think that most of the Indian players go to the gym, but I'm not sure that most of the players know what the correct thing to do at the gym is. So you get my point,” he said.He also believes foreigners remain decisive in the ISL. Last season, teams operated with differing numbers of overseas players, with East Bengal and Mohun Bagan winning the top two positions while Mumbai, despite using fewer foreigners, emerged as the strongest side operating with four.“The foreigners are the difference in Indian football,” Marquez said. “But obviously, the level of the Indian players is very important. With good Indian players, you will have more possibilities to win the ISL than without them.”Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.