Dutchman Rob Baan appointed AIFF Technical Director

The All India Football Federation have appointed Dutchman Rob Baan for a two year period as the new Technical Director of the AIFF. Rob Baan would stay responsible for drafting an Indian Football Masterplan. He was earlier involved in similar capacity with the Football Federation Australian.

AIFF president Praful Patel welcomed Mr. Baan's appointment. "This is definitely the most important initiative undertaken by the AIFF jointly with FIFA and OSF (Orange Sports Forum) for grassroot and youth development of Indian Football. I am confident that the appointment of the Technical Director along with establishing Regional and Elite Academies will go a long way in taking Indian Football to a new level."

AIFF General Secretary Kushal Das feels this is a step in the right direction. "We are very pleased with the appointment of our new Technical Director Mr. Rob Baan as part of our master agreement with Orange Sports Forum. Mr. Baan will be responsible for structuring the development plan jointly with FIFA and laying the philosophy of Indian football for the future."

"AIFF aims to establish four Regional Football Academies and one Elite Academy by 31st March 2012. These Academies will be developed with Technical Support from FIFA, Philips and PSV (Eindhoven). Mr. Baan will work closely with AIFF/FIFA, PSV and Philips to get the best possible structure and design of the Academies to achieve optimal results as quickly as possible. We trust that over the next few years the level of our National squads will improve significantly as will our FIFA ranking."

Mr. Baan thanked the AIFF for giving him the chance to serve Indian football. "It is fantastic that AIFF has given me the chance to use my year-long expertise in India. Recent research reports have shown that football is a sport with huge potential in India. With its dazzling 1.2 billion people, rich history and culture India is a sleeping giant."

"In the next two years I will work hard together with PSV and AIFF to lay the groundwork for the future of Indian football. I see it as my job to create the right conditions based on the Dutch school but with a strong Indian signature," Baan maintained.

Rob Baan had previously served as technical director for the Netherlands, Feyenoord Rotterdam and ADO Den Haag at home besides UAE side Al Jazeera Club and Australia, while also having coached numerous teams in the Netherlands early on in his career.

The deal was finalised yesterday and signed with Rob Baan taking over his new post from November 1, 2011.