‘Time is coming to put all cards on table’: Indian football team coach Igor Stimac’s cryptic post

Indian football team coach Igor Stimac put up a cryptic post on social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, on Tuesday where he said that the “time had come to put all cards on the table”.

“Target or honest fighter for the betterment of Indian football? The time is coming to put all cards on the table and see how much and who really cares about football in this country. Give it a thought before making up your judgment and thanks once again for your support,” the Croat posted on X.

Stimac was posting this on a day The Indian Express had reported that ahead of the Asian Cup qualifiers, Stimac gave details of national team players to a Delhi NCR-based astrologer Bhupesh Sharma and then picked the Indian team on his advice.

The Express had additionally reported that the duo had purportedly exchanged nearly 100 messages in May-June 2022. India played four matches during this period: a friendly against Jordan followed by three Asian Cup qualifiers against Cambodia, Afghanistan and Hong Kong.

Target or honest fighter for the betterment of Indian football?

The time is coming to put all cards on the table and see how much and who really cares about football in this country.

Give it a thought before making up your judgment and thanks once again for your support. pic.twitter.com/SfCaargLlz

— Igor Štimac (@stimac_igor) September 12, 2023

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Before each game, the messages show Stimac was in touch with Sharma. Not only do these messages put a question mark on the integrity of the Indian team’s selection process, they also raise issues of propriety — vital team information being shared with an “outsider” runs the risk of being misused.

The report led former India footballers like