German football legend Lothar Matthaus questions India’s coaching standards, arguing that only top-quality mentors can help the country produce better footballers and compete on the world stage. (Image Credit: @SuperbFootyPics)
German football legend Lothar Matthaus has called for an overhaul of India's entire football coaching structure, citing that only the best mentors can produce world-class players. The 1990 World Cup winner spoke to the media on Sunday and first stressed that India needed to bring in experienced football figures to train coaches at the grassroots and academy levels.
Matthaus emphasized that footballers can only turn out good when trained by high-caliber coaches. Using education as an example, he said the foundation of any successful athlete lies in the hands of their early mentors. “A good teacher makes a good student. And when you have a bad teacher or professor, you don’t get good students,” he said.
He advocated that India should incorporate legends, ex-players, and reputed international coaches to improve the local standards of coaching. The process has to start right at the school level, he said, where the young players are at the grassroots level in terms of football education.
Matthaus was surprised that the most populous country in the world continues to miss qualification for the World Cup, while some other smaller countries were making remarkable progress. He cited Cape Verde qualifying for next year's FIFA World Cup with a population of just around half a million and questioned India's long absence from the global stage.
"You have the highest population in the world and you don't go to the World Cup? This cannot be," he said. To Matthaus, the comparison underscores that system, planning, and coaching-not population size-drive football success.
The German great believes India needs a united footballing roadmap, wherein the AIFF must cooperate with the government, private clubs, and academies. According to him, a coordinated system is essential for developing talent in a structured, long-term manner.
"You have to find a system that brings together the football federation, the government, the clubs and the academies to work for a common goal-like you have in cricket, hockey or chess," said Matthaus. He praised the way India has produced champions in those other sports through sustained investment and a shared vision, arguing that football needs the same approach.
Besides that, Matthaus, being the brand ambassador of the Bengal Super League, also drew attention to this fact: regional leagues will only be able to give shape to future stars if coaching quality improves.
Reflecting on the recent struggles of his own country, Matthaus admitted that Germany has lacked passion and unity of late, traits he said once formed the bedrock of their footballing identity.
The former captain pointed to early exits in the last two World Cups as a sign of deeper issues. "This is not what we expect from the national team," he said, citing a "lack of passion and camaraderie" among players.
For him, again it's down to the coach's job to rebuild the team spirit. Once Germany finds the right leader to get the fire burning again that drove other generations, Matthaus believes the team can be amongst the favourites once more.
