The All India Football Federation’s latest move ahead of India’s preparations for the FIFA U-15 World Cup has hit an immediate roadblock.
Within hours of announcing Ranjit Bajaj as manager of the India U-15 team for the tournament in Azerbaijan, the Minerva Academy owner indicated that he is unlikely to accept the role, citing poor communication, concerns over the team’s structure, and the timing of the appointment.
The AIFF’s decision came after weeks of discussion surrounding India’s youth football programme. While Bibiano Fernandes was retained as head coach, Bajaj’s appointment appeared to be an attempt to combine one of Indian football’s most influential grassroots figures with the existing national youth setup. However, speaking exclusively to India Today, Bajaj revealed that he learned about his appointment only after it had been made public.
“I had absolutely no idea. I found out only after I started getting calls asking me whether I had been appointed. That’s how I got to know. Nobody from the AIFF had spoken to me before the announcement.”
According to Bajaj, congratulatory messages and media enquiries began arriving before any official communication from the federation. It was only after he contacted AIFF officials himself that they confirmed the appointment and informed him that a formal letter would follow.
“People started congratulating me. Reporters were calling me for quotes and reactions, and I was sitting there wondering what exactly had happened because nobody from the AIFF had even informed me.”
For Bajaj, the issue extended beyond the appointment itself.
“This is not how a professional federation works. Unfortunately, this has become a repeated pattern. These are the things that are hurting Indian football.”
Shortly afterwards, he posted a video on social media indicating that he was unlikely to take up the assignment.
Concerns Over the Team Structure
Bajaj stressed that his reservations were not directed at Bibiano Fernandes, for whom he expressed respect, but at the AIFF’s decision to pair two football figures with different working methods without prior discussion.
“I don’t see the logic behind appointing me as manager and Bibiano as coach together.”
He explained that he would have been expected to work with a coaching staff he had never collaborated with rather than the support team he has developed over the years at Minerva Academy.
“With absolutely no disrespect to Bibiano or his coaching staff, I don’t know them. If I don’t know the people around me, how am I supposed to work in complete sync with them?”
To illustrate his point, Bajaj compared the situation to pairing two managers with contrasting football philosophies.
“It’s like appointing Mourinho and Pep together. I’m not comparing our stature, but our styles are different. They have different ideas, different ways of working. It just doesn’t make sense.”
Throughout the conversation, Bajaj reiterated that his criticism was aimed at the federation’s planning rather than at Bibiano personally.
Questions Over AIFF’s Planning
The episode has also raised fresh questions about the AIFF’s decision-making process.
Bajaj has emerged as one of the most outspoken voices in Indian football in recent years. Alongside regularly criticising the sport’s administration, he has overseen Minerva Academy’s rise as one of the country’s leading youth development centres, producing multiple AIFF Youth League-winning teams, international youth tournament successes, and several players who have progressed to India’s national teams.
Bibiano Fernandes, meanwhile, has been one of the architects of India’s age-group programme, leading the country to multiple SAFF youth titles and guiding teams to qualification for four AFC youth competitions.
Many viewed the appointment as an effort to combine grassroots expertise with continuity in the national setup. Others, however, argued that Bajaj’s greatest strengths lie in talent identification, academy development, and football administration rather than working within an established national-team coaching structure.
Regardless of those differing views, the immediate controversy centres on the federation’s handling of the process. The AIFF announced the appointment publicly before informing one of the appointees, leaving uncertainty over whether the roles, responsibilities, and working relationships had been fully discussed beforehand.
Timing Another Major Concern
Bajaj also questioned the timing of the decision, with the FIFA U-15 World Cup scheduled to begin in October.
“The tournament is only a couple of months away. What scouting can you do now? What planning can you do now?”
He argued that youth national teams require years of planning rather than last-minute changes.
“Youth football is about long-term planning. You don’t start building a World Cup team two months before the tournament.”
For Bajaj, the episode reflects wider structural issues within Indian football.
“This isn’t about me. This is about the way Indian football continues to function. If we keep doing things like this, we’ll keep getting the same results.”
What initially appeared to be a significant appointment aimed at strengthening India’s U-15 World Cup campaign has instead shifted attention toward the AIFF’s administrative processes. With the tournament fast approaching, the focus has moved from on-field preparation to questions over planning, communication, and whether the federation had a clear roadmap before making one of its most high-profile youth football announcements of the year.
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