Kolkata: Khalid Jamil and Stephen Constantine are frontrunners to be named head coach of the men’s senior national football team when the executive committee of the All India Football Federation (AIFF) meets on Friday. The new coach’s first assignment will be the Central Asian Football Association (CAFA) Nations Cup from August 31.
Should Jamil, 48, be chosen, he will be the first Indian in charge in over 13 years. Jamil is now overseeing his club Jamshedpur FC’s campaign in the 134th Durand Cup.
Along with Stephen Constantine and Stefan Tarkovic, Jamil is in the final shortlist handed over to the executive committee on July 23. From 170 applications, the list was pruned by national team director Subrata Paul, AIFF technical director Syed Sabir Pasha, and the federation’s technical committee headed by IM Vijayan. Bimal Ghosh and Armando Colaco, advisors to AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey, also gave inputs.
While Tarkovic and Constantine have been national team coaches – a requirement that will be given preference, as per the advertisement issued by AIFF on July 4 – what could favour Jamil is that he would need the least time to bed-in. Tarkovic has never coached in India and that effectively puts the 52-year-old Slovak, who has European championship finals experience and whose last assignment with Kyrgyzstan ended in June 2024, third in the pecking order.
Constantine, 62, has been India head coach twice, from 2002-05 and 2015-19. The Anglo-Cypriot was also in charge of East Bengal in the Indian Super League in 2022-23 but the club’s ninth-place finish could put him at a disadvantage. Constantine took charge of Pakistan in 2023 and though they won a first World Cup qualifier (against Cambodia) under him, it turned out to be his only win in 10 matches in charge. Yet, he has backers in AIFF because of his familiarity with India.
Jamil led Jamshedpur FC to the ISL semi-final and Super Cup final last term and has not lost in the Durand Cup. In short, if current form is the consideration, the former India international is the favourite despite his lack of international experience and working with a changing room full of big names.
“The fact that he (Jamil) would also cost the least is an advantage,” said an AIFF executive committee member on Thursday. “If the only Indian coach to make the ISL semi-finals twice does not get a chance, who should,” said another member. Not authorised to speak to the media, the members did not want to be named. .
The last Indian coach to head the national team was Savio Medeira who was in charge from October 2011 to March 2012.
