CHENNAI: WHEN Indian footballer-turned coach Crispin Chettri took over the Indian women’s football team at the beginning of the year, he had his job cut out for him. Since 2022, the women’s team had not been in good form. Their AFC Asia Cup run as hosts was cut short due to a COVID outbreak, and their losses in the South Asian Football Federation's (SAFF) Championships and the Olympic and Asian Games qualifiers set up a tough mountain for him to climb.
However, few would have imagined him leading the Blue Tigresses to the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup from that position. But that is exactly what transpired on Saturday (July 6) when midfielder Sangita Basfore scored two goals against Thailand to seal India's spot in the tournament. Not only did he guide the team to qualification, but Chhetri also successfully led one of the biggest comebacks for them.
He believes the team's fighting spirit and commitment to the badge played a major role in qualification. “This bunch of players are more like a family who are willing to die for each other. For them, the badge is more important for them than the name behind the jersey,” Chhetri told this daily.
While he attributed India’s success to a well-established group of players around which the team would function, the core group is yet to be formed. There are already a few standouts. “This group has a lot of leaders, but some of the younger players like Hemam Shilky Devi, Purnima Kumari, Lynda Kom Serto and Rimpa Haldar can help lead the team in the future," Chhetri said.
Playing mostly for clubs based in Kolkata throughout his career, such as Mohun Bagan, Tollygunge Agragami and United SC where Chhetri won the Kalinga Cup with them in 2005, his foray into coaching came from his interest in becoming a physical education teacher.
Chhetri looked up to Amal Dutta, the legendary coach who had revolutionised Indian football in the 1970s with his 3-4-3 diamond system. He played under him at United SC (then known as Chirag United) in 2006. When asked about his own playing philosophy, Chhetri explained, “For me, there is no such thing as a ‘philosophy’ per se, but I like to play out from the back and develop the attack, while having my team adapt accordingly. In cases when our opponents press high, we would try to go for long balls behind the press into empty space to break the defence. This was what we did against Thailand to an extent, as a plan B, as they knew about our favoured tactics.”
Prioritising passing drills, crossing and finishing for both club and national teams from day one, Chhetri has had his own share of management problems in the past. In his stint as head coach of Odisha FC's women's team, he adapted to situations and took away key lessons, amidst a poorly planned Indian Women's League (IWL) in 2023. The tournament in Ahmedabad saw players across teams struggling under scorching weather conditions. “As a coach, we did not have time to analyse team errors and work on it at the time. However, adapting in those situations helped me later in my job at the National team. Now, I know how to prepare the team for each and every match,” Chhetri said.
In the 2026 Asian Cup qualifiers, Thailand (ranked 46 in the FIFA women's rankings, India ranked at 70) were a formidable opponent in Group B. "These rankings can be tricky. We are ranked higher than Nepal and Bangladesh, yet we did badly against them in the SAFF Championships. I believed that if we showed character, even Thailand would be beatable.”
After taking the team to qualification, Chhetri has already started work on strengthening the U17 and U20 squads to develop a core group for the senior team for the 2030 AFC Women’s Asian Cup. However, he still remains realistic. “Long camps and friendly matches would not help. Players must be match fit, and we should choose to play high-intensity matches. Also, the IWL should be expanded to at least 12 teams with a longer season, so that the talent pool can broaden in addition to more game time,” he concluded.