Few positives of Bob Houghton era according to a facebook fan :
Nilanjana Saha
Should Bob stay back as coach?
5 reasons I think he should...
1. Hat-trick Of Trophies - How often did we see the Indian national team winning international tournaments? It was under Bob Houghton that the Men in Blues won the Nehru Cup for the very first time in 2007. The following year, the AFC Challenge Cup was won which led to an automatic qualification for the 2011 Asian Cup. India managed to successfully defend their Nehru Cup title in 2009 where once again they beat the Syrians in the finals. For sure, the man who gave India three trophies to brag about deserves to be given another opportunity.
2. Decent Performance At The 2011 Asian Cup - Being pitted against the top tier teams from the continent, India didn't crumble under pressure as was expected by many. They did manage to score three goals and performed better in the second half in each of the three matches against Australia, Bahrain and South Korea.
3. Excellent Motivator - Houghton is known to extract the best out of players who didn't have a great season domestically such as Subrata Paul who was benched for most parts of the I-League campaign with East Bengal but won the 2009 edition of the Nehru Cup for the country. His motivational qualities have made him a favourite amongst the players who have had the opportunity to be under him.
4. Youth Development - While many criticize Bob Houghton for excluding players who have been exceptional in the I-League from his squads, one must not forget how Houghton is chiefly responsible for ensuring that the Indian team has a good supply line of footballers. It was his idea to bring in Colin Toal as the technical director for Indian football and oversee the age group teams.
5. Speak Out - Unlike many coaches, Houghton is known to speak in the best interests of Indian football. While this is certainly one of the major reasons why the AIFF head honchos aren't too pleased with him, there is a need for someone to bring in perspective and ensure that the development does take place and more importantly, in the right direction.
It was a good week for Indian football when the newly formed Indian national team qualified without any real problems for the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, but now it could become sour as it has become public that the AIFF yesterday mailed their coach Bob Houghton a show cause notice, which Bob would get in person once he returns to Goa later today.
Three key points have been mentioned in the letter due to which the show cause notice has been send out. The first one is alleged racial abuse against Indian referee Dinesh Nair, who was the fourth official in the India vs Yemen international friendly last October in Pune. After the game Nair alleged that Houghton had referred him as a 'Bastard Indian Referee' and therefore lodged an official complaint with the match commissioner. In the meanwhile the national team has send in a signed letter to the AIFF in support of Bob and against the allegations of Dinesh Nair.
Point two is India's poor performance in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup and in earlier international friendlies in September/October 2010. India conceded 13 goals against Australia, Bahrain and South Korea in Qatar; which according to the AIFF Technical & Executive Committees isn't acceptable especially due to the high cost involved in the teams preparations.
The third point mentioned is the open criticism by Bob Houghton against the AIFF in the national and especially international media before and during the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. The lack of infrastructure and professionalism in administration where the main points mentioned by Bob why Indian football hasn't developed over the years. And it seems the AIFF isn't happy about its deficiencies being exposed openly around the world.
Now Bob Houghton has been asked to appear infront of an four member AIFF committee on April 11 to present his own case and depending on the answers the federation would take a decision to dismiss or retain him until the end of his contract in 2013.
The writing is on the wall, the AIFF is taking the next step to try and dismiss their coach just after a successful qualification campaign. Surely one can discuss the third point of open criticism, but when you get a coach like Bob you should know that he is open, direct and honest in his views, while the first two points normally hold no ground.
It will be interesting to see what happens in the coming two/three weeks...
AIFF don't have sense of timing....they sud have done this before or very late...just after the winning team comes, they showcause Bob...idiots!!! this will provoke a very bad reaction from fans
Comments
how did he save BOb?
It was a good week for Indian football when the newly formed Indian national team qualified without any real problems for the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup, but now it could become sour as it has become public that the AIFF yesterday mailed their coach Bob Houghton a show cause notice, which Bob would get in person once he returns to Goa later today.
Three key points have been mentioned in the letter due to which the show cause notice has been send out. The first one is alleged racial abuse against Indian referee Dinesh Nair, who was the fourth official in the India vs Yemen international friendly last October in Pune. After the game Nair alleged that Houghton had referred him as a 'Bastard Indian Referee' and therefore lodged an official complaint with the match commissioner. In the meanwhile the national team has send in a signed letter to the AIFF in support of Bob and against the allegations of Dinesh Nair.
Point two is India's poor performance in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup and in earlier international friendlies in September/October 2010. India conceded 13 goals against Australia, Bahrain and South Korea in Qatar; which according to the AIFF Technical & Executive Committees isn't acceptable especially due to the high cost involved in the teams preparations.
The third point mentioned is the open criticism by Bob Houghton against the AIFF in the national and especially international media before and during the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar. The lack of infrastructure and professionalism in administration where the main points mentioned by Bob why Indian football hasn't developed over the years. And it seems the AIFF isn't happy about its deficiencies being exposed openly around the world.
Now Bob Houghton has been asked to appear infront of an four member AIFF committee on April 11 to present his own case and depending on the answers the federation would take a decision to dismiss or retain him until the end of his contract in 2013.
The writing is on the wall, the AIFF is taking the next step to try and dismiss their coach just after a successful qualification campaign. Surely one can discuss the third point of open criticism, but when you get a coach like Bob you should know that he is open, direct and honest in his views, while the first two points normally hold no ground.
It will be interesting to see what happens in the coming two/three weeks...
Source : <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://arunfoot.blogspot.com/2011/03/aiff-show-cause-bob-houghton.html">http://arunfoot.blogspot.com/2011/03/ai ... ghton.html</a><!-- m -->
we need to have a interaction with aiff bigwigs,answer fans questions