Swedish national Johan Kalin is a new Nepali national football coach. He succeeded Gyotoku Koji from Japan. Kalin, however, is not a new name in Nepal as he had led Machhindra Club to the third-place finish in the Martyr’s Memorial ‘A’ Division League held in 2013-14. He has been offered a two-year contract starting March 1, 2019 until February 28 of 2021. Khabarhub’s Eak Raj Bastola and Santosh Raj Pandey caught up with Kalin, for his views on Nepali football, its future course, among other issues related to football. Excerpts:

First of all, congratulations on being a coach of Nepali National Football Men’s team. What do you that prompted the ANFA to select you as the coach for Nepali national team?

Thank You. I think they have seen potential, qualities and capabilities in me that I can lead the national team to a new height.

Frankly speaking, I always love new challenges. I have been in this sector for the last ten years. I, therefore, know how to coach in the best possible way. I have been here because of my friends and colleagues. I know the nuts and bolts of Nepali football. Nepali Football team is, in fact, striving to achieve better outcomes. They are also aware of my leadership skills. Being a football coach, you need to first test your leadership skill. Similarly, it is a different kind of challenge you face in football.

What was your first impression when you received the offer from ANFA?

Actually, the first question that popped out was whether to go back to football or not because I had already quit football a few years back. I was planning to do something new in a different sector for a couple of years. When I consulted with my friends about the ANFA offer and going back to Nepal, they gave me a nod saying I need to accept the offer.

Meanwhile, I would say that even though the offer was an opportunity for me, the time was not favorable since my wife had just joined a new job, we had bought a new house and shifted very recently. Imagine how I felt when I had to leave my new house, though temporarily, just after a couple of weeks. I discussed the matter with my wife. She, too, agreed to the idea, and here I am!

You are aware that Nepal has huge football fans who really want to see Nepal winning big international games. But, unfortunately, we have not been able to make it. How do you plan to meet the fans’ expectations?

It’s not a secret to anyone that Nepal has gone through tough times in the last five years. League has been down for several years. In fact, the league is important for the overall development of the players.

In the long run, we need to get a good coach and good training. Similarly, for the betterment of football, league and tournament should be conducted in the district levels to find new players, who in the long run can lead the national team. I think we also need to work a lot on organizations, football structure, and football pitches. We need to work hard to shape the team and to accustom them for pressing games and attacking games. Similarly, to have the ball we need a better defense. Football is a team game. Every player, including the goalkeeper and the striker, have an equally important role.

What role does the infrastructure help boost football?

We have a shortage of football ground. We are compelled to practice only on this pitch (ANFA Complex ground), which is the best pitch available now. It is high time that the administration should construct different types of pitches where players can practice.

However, we need to accept what we have at the moment. It takes time. We hope we can do our best with what facilities we have with us since we do not have any options than to utilize the infrastructure that we currently have.

What potential do you see in Nepali Football?

I have been following the South Asian Games since the last few years. Earlier, India and Nepal were in the same status. But now, India has developed a lot in football and left Nepal far behind in terms of structures, games, infrastructure, and resources. However, Nepali football team still has a high potential. We need to focus on the numbers of games. The more you play, the more you upgrade your techniques. Nepali players need to practice a lot. We need to spend more time on pitches, need to spend more time coaching and educating the players.

We always fail to score goals. How you thought of overcoming this weakness

I don’t think that Nepali players fail to score goals. As I have mentioned earlier, football is teamwork and all players have equal responsibilities to kiss the net. We need to develop the football structure and it definitely takes some time. Midfielder and defense should provide the best ball for the striker to make a goal. Possession is the best thing that helps a team to hit the goal. If we put more pressure and tactics, we will have more opportunity to score goals.

Where do you see the Nepali team in your tenure?
You can, of course, see Nepal high in the FIFA ranking. We will have developed skills for playing a game. The players will be organized. You will see a good performance in the world cup qualifying. Even though playing in the qualifying games will be a tough one, you will undoubtedly see some progress.

What strategies are you planning to implement while preparing the Nepali team to play against Chinese Taipei and Malaysia in the World Cup qualifier?

For this, I have been focussing on three major things. I want to shape the team, pressing the game, and passing the game. Similarly, we will have intense training on attacking. Likewise, the training will be also on the movement and passing the game.

It’s hard to expect a lot more from this game but we will surely have a progressive, strong, passionate game. We need to set the defense to play against the top ranking teams. We will have a controlled game. We will have more attacks. If you attack more, you will have more chances to score the goal.

As you said giving a good performance is what has been the priority. Talking about the Indian team, considered as an all-time rival, we have hardly won the game against them. How do you plan to take on the Indian team?

India and Nepal are like Sweden and Finland. We need to change our playing strategy according to their strategy. Knowing about their new strategy is an important thing. But as I said earlier, if we have a good structure and strategy, we will definitely win India.

Finally, do you have anything to share with us?

Nepali fans are always passionate. Fans always have high expectations from the coach. To be a coach is a big challenge. We will try our best to keep the fans happy and proud. We will keep doing our best to live up to their expectations. Let see, where we will reach.