With no head coach at the helm, after the departure of Manolo Marquez, Ravi Kumar Punia believes given the success of Crispin Chhetri with the women\u2019s side, familiarity is key and an Indian tactician like Khalid Jamil would be a better choice for men's national team head coach.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWhy promote someone else when we have good coaches here? We have Khalid Jamil and many others with the right qualities. In your family, your father knows everyone well - their strengths and what they can do. Similarly, in Indian football, if we bring in someone from outside, even with good experience, they won\u2019t connect with the players the same way.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cAn Indian coach has seen these players grow from the grassroots to higher levels. In my opinion, the head coach of the Indian team should be Indian. I\u2019m sure the results would be different because he knows the players\u2019 strengths and what they can or can't do during tournaments,\u201d Punia told IANS.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The former defender who helped Rajasthan United secure I-League qualification in 2021, also weighed in on the recent debate of whether relegation should be introduced in the ISL, stating that I-League teams currently do not have the finances to compete with the top division clubs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cAn Indian coach has seen these players grow from the grassroots to higher levels. In my opinion, the head coach of the Indian team should be Indian. I\u2019m sure the results would be different because he knows the players\u2019 strengths and what they can or can't do during tournaments,\u201d Punia told IANS.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\"If an ISL club gets relegated to I-League, they still have resources and good players. I think promoting more teams to the I-League and increasing matches would help. Everyone would get a chance to play in the ISL,\u201d he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n