'Fed up of the lies': Igor Stimac's BIG REVELATION after getting sacked as India head coach

Ousted India football coach Igor Stimac launched a stinging attack on AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey on Friday, stating that the sooner Chaubey leaves the post, the better it would be for the future of football in the country, where the globally beloved sport is not growing at all.

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Igor Stimac lashes out on Kalyan Chaubey

Stimac was sacked on Monday after the team's failure to reach the third round of the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers. A day later, the Croatian coach threatened to file a lawsuit against the All India Football Federation (AIFF) in the FIFA Tribunal if his outstanding dues were not cleared within 10 days.

During a lengthy online press conference on Friday, Stimac said Indian football is "imprisoned" and blamed Chaubey for most of the problems affecting the game. He also expressed frustration over "lies and unfulfilled promises" during his tenure.

"The sooner Kalyan Chaubey leaves AIFF, the better it is for Indian football," Stimac said.

"Football is the most popular sport in the world, but India is the only place where football is not growing," he added.

Stimac was appointed head coach in March 2019, following the departure of his predecessor Stephen Constantine. Earlier this month, after India suffered a defeat against Qatar in their final second-round match of the World Cup Qualifiers, the AIFF decided to sack Stimac.

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Stimac did not spare AIFF's technical committee and legend I M Vijayan

The outspoken coach also criticized AIFF Technical Committee head and Indian football legend I M Vijayan, stating that he is not fit for the job.

"I M Vijayan was a fantastic player but he is not the person to head the national federation's technical committee," he said.

Stimac, a member of the Croatian team that won the bronze medal at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, stated that this is the first time he has been sacked as a coach in his career.

"In my career, I've not been sacked till now, this was the first time. And it was wrongly so - in my reply to AIFF I've done the same.

"It was impossible for me to continue without enough support, I was fed up of the lies, the unfulfilled promises and being surrounded by people who are only thinking about their own interests," Stimac said from Croatia.

The 56-year-old revealed that he received a final warning before the Asian Cup simply for trying to stress to the AIFF the importance of the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Stimac said that the meeting resulted in him going to the hospital and undergoing a surgery to treat a heart condition.

"After I told them that the World Cup Qualifiers were more important than Asian Cup, I received a final warning from AIFF. When I received the final warning on December 2, no one knows this, I finished in the hospital.

"I was disturbed with everything going on; stressed from the obvious problems. I had an immediate surgery on my heart. I wasn't ready to speak to anyone or find excuses.

"I was ready to put myself on the line to prepare my team for the Asian Cup to give the best shot," Stimac said. 

(With inputs from PTI)