FIFA World Cup qualifiers: Coach Igor Stimac puts his job on line as India play virtual must-win match

When the going gets tough, Igor Stimac likes to dust off the classics.

Ahead of the second World Cup qualifier clash between India and Afghanistan in as many as five days, the Croatian bemoaned the fickle nature of support for the national team (‘Criticising players is not helping’). He reiterated that India’s best performances were preceded by national camps held by him (‘In my four years there were three long camps that we had.’) and that the country’s inability to stop their goal drought was a problem before he arrived and would remain after he would leave (‘It’s because foreigners are playing in the important positions in ISL.’).

Amongst all of those statements, the 59-year-old also made it clear that the team still has a good chance of making it into the third round of the World Cup qualifiers. But what would happen if the country was unable to make it into that promised land of the third round of the WCQ?

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“Never mind the contract, If I don’t take India to the third round, I will leave,” said Stimac at the pre-match press conference in Guwahati on Monday. “With my pride, with my honour, with everything that I have done in the last five years. But if we qualify, there’s plenty of work that has to be done.”

It was once again quite apparent that the head coach was looking past Afghanistan, despite being cowered into a 0-0 draw on the road, against a team that routinely halts the Indians from taking a victory against them during his run as the Indian boss. Yet the Croatian continued to look at Kuwait as the ultimate game for India in this round of football.

Even with his calculations, a win against Afghanistan is crucial. Kuwait have