Where’s the Spanish connection?
C Rajshekhar Rao
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
New Delhi: After all the hype about Spanish coach Jose Brasa getting set to boost the fortunes of Indian hockey, there is every fear that his magic might not reach the shores here at all.
The ad hoc committee of the Indian Olympic Association has been in touch with Brasa for a good six months, but nothing has come of it so far. Indian officials confirmed sending an offer letter earlier this month, but not only have they gone too slow, the terms have reportedly been changed so much so that Brasa is having a rethink. “I have been considering taking up the assignment for some time now, but the offer letter that I received does a 180-degree turn on the terms,” says Brasa, not ruling out the assignment yet.
Though officials insist they want Brasa on board, the general feeling is that they are not as keen as they were last year, following success in the Asia Cup and the Azlan Shah tournaments. Brasa, who was originally demanding $10,000 per month for the assignment, was reported to have agreed to take a cut of around 30 per cent, but was finally offered lesser. There are also several other demands on the team as well as the personal front that have reportedly been shot down by the sports ministry.
The Spanish coach concedes to have been in consultation with renowned Aussie coach Ric Charlesworth, who was dropped unceremoniously by India last year and understands the problems likely to be faced by Brasa just in case he decides to grab the job.
“If Brasa goes to India there will be many matters to settle…living arrangements, schooling for the kids, extra staff from outside (their contracts and arrangements) but mostly who does what and makes the decisions…is it the government officials or is it the staff and coaches? If the final decisions are made by officials, things will move very slowly,” says Charlesworth, after experiencing the system here first hand.
“All I would say is that any outside coach will have an agenda and would want to change some things,” adds Charlesworth, warning that India should not make too much of the Azlan Shah win.