The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has identified Ashley Westwood as the man to take the men’s national team forward.
The current Bengaluru FC manager’s appointment is expected to be approved by the body’s technical committee when it convenes in Mumbai on Sunday.
However, Westwood will not take up the reins until June as the AIFF will allow him to see his contract out at the I-League club.
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The 38-year-old Englishman had led Bengaluru to the league title in the club’s inaugural season.
On Tuesday, Westwood revealed that the AIFF had not contacted him. But he had added, “Everyone wants to progress in football. No matter who you are, you want to have an up curve in your career graph. Obviously, we have had a successful season, and I have done well as the coach. Successful coaches will always be linked to certain jobs.”
Before coaching Bengaluru, Westwood had worked as a player-manager at non-league side Kettering Town and later was appointed as a first-team coach at Blackburn Rovers during the 67-day managerial tenure of Michael Appleton.
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The former Crewe Alexandra defender holds a UEFA ‘A’ coaching license.
Ever since Wim Koevermans brought his nearly two-and-a-half year-long association with India to an end, Westwood’s name frequently came up in discussions over the next appointment.
It was learnt that Kerala Blasters’ Trevor Morgan and NorthEast United’s Ricki Herbert were also in contention, but they eventually lost out to the Bengaluru manager due to his I-League exploits and knowledge of Indian football.
Positive relationshipWestwood’s positive relationship with Sunil Chetri only helped his candidature. When the Englishman was appointed the manager at Bengaluru, he had moved the national side’s skipper to the left in order to accommodate all his forwards in the starting line-up.
While Chetri was not convinced initially, he enjoyed the role as the season progressed.
The striker finished as the joint top-scorer in the I-League, and particularly appreciated Westwood’s modern coaching methods.
On Tuesday, Chetri had revealed that he speaks to the AIFF technical committee members “now and then”. Hence, it cannot be ruled out that the 30-year-old would have been taken on board before Westwood was chosen. Once appointed, the Englishman will become the Indian national side’s youngest manager ever.
However, since Westwood will only work with the national side after June, there is a risk that India may slip below its current FIFA ranking of 171.
The AIFF had considered the possibility of organising a friendly during the international window from March 23 to 31, but the plan has been shelved.
The proposed friendly match would have also clashed with the I-League schedule.