Players are doing well with possession-based style of football: India head coach Stimac

NEW DELHI: National team head coach Igor Stimac has said his players have been doing a good job with the possession-based style of football but need improvement in some areas.
Speaking during an international virtual coaching conference organised by All India Football Federation (AIFF), Stimac said that the 4-2-3-1 formation which he prefers was the “best system for Indian football”.
“We are really proud of the players for how they have executed their job so far. They have been doing the right job. There has been an overall improvement,” Stimac said.
Talking about the playing style, the 1998 FIFA World Cup bronze medalwinning Croatian said, “We have had to adapt to a system where players play more with the ball. We have switched to 4-2-3-1 where the game starts from the goalkeeper and the centre-backs play a major role in controlling the game.
“There are connected movements and players need to be intelligent to make quick decisions. Full-backs need to make a run forward so they find free spaces in between and hurt the opponent. They need to learn to run behind the opponent’s backline.
Even wingers can come inside and fullbacks go to the side-lines to utilise free space.”
Stimac, who coached Croatia to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, said wingers need to show greater character on the pitch.
“Number of passes as well as the duration of playing with the ball has gone up significantly. We are constantly working on improving the numbers and raising the bar,” he said.
“In order to improve our passing, we throw in our players to small-sided games. It improves players’ passing accuracy and their movements after passing the ball.
–PTI

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