The Indian football team has had a season to remember as they claimed three titles under the tutelage of Croatian coach Igor Stimac since the beginning of the year.
India’s strong showing was evidenced by their jump into the top 100 of the FIFA World Rankings as the Blue Tigers scaled the 99th position on the list.
However, amid the successes, a baffling report of Stimac consulting a Delhi-based astrologer, Bhupesh Sharma, regarding the stars of the players ahead of India’s games.
Sources state that Stimac sent the list of the 11 probables to the astrologer ahead of the game against Afghanistan in the Asian Cup qualifier and asked him for an evaluation of the ‘stars’ of the players at the time of kickoff.
And shockingly, following the astrologer’s calculations, two established big-name players went unnamed in the starting lineup, as their stars weren’t favourable on the day according to Sharma.
According to the report, this wasn’t an isolated incident and it occurred more than once, with Stimac and Sharma reportedly exchanging a large amount of texts pertaining to the same.
Between May and June India contested a friendly against Jordan followed by three Asian Cup qualifiers against Cambodia, Afghanistan and Hong Kong.
It has been reported that Stimac was in communication with Sharma, who was introduced to the Croatian coach by former secretary general of AIFF, Kushal Das.
“Bhupesh was recommended to me and I was convinced (by others) that I have to check upon his possible effects in sports…No more than that. I requested another foreign assistant coach which was never even considered and was shocked to find out the size of Bhupesh’s contract.” Stimac said.
Ahead of the friendly against Jordan on the 28th of May, Stimac reportedly sent a text to Sharma, seeking his council on the selection of the players in accordance with their stars. And when the astrologer sent his verdict on it not being an ideal day for a particular attacking midfielder, the player was benched from the starting lineup on the day.
Stimac once again sought advice from Sharma ahead of the team’s game against Afghanistan, which the Blue Tigers won 2-1, and according to reports, Stimac felt that all the calls he made on the day, following the word of the astrologer, things were ‘spot on’.
According to sources, Stimac met with Sharma before India’s fixture against Hong Kong, which the Blue Tigers ultimately ended up winning and sealing qualification.
Stimac added notes such as player fitness updates so that the astrologer could give his take on the prediction of the ‘time’ of the player, during game time.
It has been stated by sources that the coach did not reveal the names of the payers to the astrologer, so as to not leak team information, however, this sheds a shadow of doubt over the integrity of the selection process, while also exposing crucial team tactics and dynamics to external entities.
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