Chasing the AFC Cup glory, Bengaluru ready for battle against Air Force Club

Bengaluru FC Media 

It’s been billed as the game that could be the start a revolution for one country and the resurrection of another as JSW Bengaluru FC take on Iraq’s Air Force Club in the final of the AFC Cup to be played at Doha’s Suhaim Bin Hamad Stadium, today evening. 

After a year of battle that has seen 36 of the top clubs from the continent go head-to-head, the Blues and Air Force Club are the last teams standing in what is a first appearance in the final of an Asian competition for both sides. 

“We’re up against a strong team but it would mean a lot for Indian football if we won the title. That’s a prospect that excites us and will drive us tomorrow. They have scored many goals, have a striker that’s regularly scoring and are physically strong but I’ve told our boys to be ready for battle and we will hope our work ethic gives us a good result,” said BFC coach Albert Roca while addressing the press on the eve of the game. 

Much of the pre-game focus has been on Lalthuammawia Ralte, the Bengaluru ‘keeper who will be playing his first competitive game since turning out for the Blues in a 5-3 home win against Ayeyawady United in the group stages in April this year. Ralte comes in for first-choice Amrinder Singh who misses the big game owing to a suspension. But Roca sounded confident of the shot-stopper from Mizoram who was brilliant in the Blues’ Federation Cup-winning season. “Mawia is a good goalkeeper who has been pushing Amrinder to do well consistently and though he has not featured much this season, he has been a thorough professional at training, which is why we are not the least bit worried about this situation,” he said. 

Suspensions have also hit Air Force who will be without influential midfielder Bashar Rasan Bonyan and defender Samal Saeed. Bonyan picked up a straight red after scoring a brace in Air Force’s 3-2 win over Al-Ahed in the second leg of the semifinal. 

Bengaluru will look to fall back on some inspired performances through their campaign that saw the Blues oust defending champion Johor Darul Ta’zim in the semifinal (4-2) as they come up against a side that has lost just one game in the tournament. The club from Iraq will turn to their talismanic striker Hammadi Ahmad who, with 15 goals from 11 games, is the tournament’s leading goal scorer. 

Roca has a fully fit squad to choose from with the exception of Australian midfielder Cameron Watson who is down with a stomach bug. “Cameron’s been down with a stomach ache but we’re doing all we can to make sure he’s ready for the game,” said Roca.

The Blues are likely to find good support in the stands on Saturday given the large presence of the Indian community in Doha, something Roca said his boys would welcome. “We’ve met so many Indian people since we’ve come here and they have all promised to come out in numbers and back us which is wonderful for the boys.” The game kicks off at 9.30 pm IST and will be telecast live on Star Sports 1 and Star HD 1. 

We’ll go out and enjoy the game: Ashley Westwood

Telecom giant Airtel’s association with I-League brought a breath of fresh air in Indian Football, Bangalore Football Stadium is sporting a new look thanks Jindal Steel Works-Bengaluru FC’s association with Indian Football. Amidst all positives, football is back in the Garden City. 

Round 1 – Bengaluru FC vs. Mohun Bagan – game on…

Talking to the press, Bengaluru FC gaffer, Ashley Westwood spoke highly about his team’s fitness level after strenuous 10-weeks of pre-season camp. They managed to see few match videos of their opponent from last season, but that might not help them much as 13 out of the 18 players in the current Bagan squad in Bangalore are new recruits. 

Team spirit is something the Steelmen is banking highly on. Any specific concern with the team? The graduate of the Manchester United Academy response was straight, “We are not Manchester United, nor we have players like Messi, we perhaps need to improve in all areas”. 

The message from the newly entrant I-League team is loud and clear – there is no expectations from the team, just go out and enjoy the game, and give fans an entertaining game! 

Mohun Bagan has hit a bumpy patch at the starting of the season, they’ve lost points in their last two encounters in Calcutta Football League. Winless before starting I-League, will that be a concern for Kareem? The Moroccan who has already spent seven seasons in I-league compared the journey of 1000 km, whereas Mohun Bagan has just completed 10 km. 

Kareem agrees that the journey has not begun in a smooth fashion, this has been a wakeup call for the team, and can do better from here. The big challenge lies for him is to transform this team to a cohesive unit. Team’s influence, on and off the field, Odafa Okoli is out injured for the first few matches in I-league.   

Kareem showered praise on Bengaluru FC management, “These guys brought a lot of professionalism in Bangalore Football, which is a rarity among the other I-League clubs. I’m quite impressed the way the stadium has come up.” 

He is quite happy that the Garden City, in spite having a football culture, didn't have any regular I-League team. The career path among the city footballers were limited, very few have courage to pack their bags and go outside. Fortunately now, Bengaluru FC will be giving them the space. 

Bengaluru FC completes foreigner slot, sign Sean Rooney

The newly formed Jindal-owned club from the Garden City has signed Rooney - Sean Rooney from Blacktown City FC, Australia. With this signing, Bengaluru FC completes their share of foreigners including an Asian quota player. The other foreigners include John Johnson, Curtis Osano and John Menyongar. Rooney plays as a striker and has signed Bengaluru FC on a one-year deal.

Rooney is no stranger to the I-League having played a season for Goan side Salgaocar before moving back to Australia with Blacktown. "I'm delighted to be back in India and it seems that this club is doing everything right, so it’s good to be part of it. I did speak to a few people before signing and they all had good things to say about Bengaluru FC. Along with helping the team produce a good brand of football, the aim is obviously going to be winning trophies with them," said the 24-year-old who arrived in the city late on Friday. The Australian had a successful last season with Blacktown, scoring 14 goals for the club.

Rooney’s former stints include one with Newcastle Jets in the A-League – Australia’s top tier football league and he has also had three appearances for the national under-20 team. 

"We have been tracking Sean’s performances with Blacktown and he has had a fantastic season to say the least. What he also brings with him is experience in the I-League and it’s just the combination we are looking for," said Mustafa Ghouse, CEO of JSW Sports.

"Sean has been in form, scoring 14 goals last season. If we are going to be a successful side, we're going to need goal scorers. We have a good strike force in Sunil, Robin, Karan, Malemnganba and Beikho but we like to have competition for places and Sean's signing assists that. He looks in good shape and is a player who takes care of himself on and off the field," said coach Ashley Westwood on the club’s new signing.

Profile

• Name: Sean Rooney 
• Position: Striker Age: 24 years 
• Nationality: Australian 
• Clubs: Blacktown City Demons, Newcastle Jets, Deltras, Salgaocar 

Airtel Rising Stars postponed indefinitely

Call it an over-dependence of one ground or paucity of quality decent grounds, the annual U-16 Airtel Rising Stars (ARS) Bangalore leg, which was slated for tomorrow, Tuesday, August 20, has been postponed. 

As many as 58 teams were participating in this inter school event, accordingly the ground was reserved for this event, from August 20 thru September 5. However, the schedule is clashing with JSW Sports, who using the same ground for the senior team as well as for setting up their academy. 

BDFA has postponed this event for now, they are going to meet the KSFA committee members tomorrow afternoon to find out a solution. 

There is no entry fee for this tournament and unlike last year, this year’s ARS will be played in a different format (inter-school), which will include players from Mangalore and Mysore. 

Watch out for this space for the new schedule!

Winners of ARS 2012

[PART I] Ashley Westwood: Managing Bengaluru FC will add another dimension to my coaching skill

Here's the first part of the two-part interaction gcsstars.com had with the Manager of Bengaluru FC Ashley Westwood. In the next part, you will listen Ashley talking about his team, I-League and, Indian Football, and so on...

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Must have been a whirlwind activity for this former assistant manager of three championship clubs in England – meet the gaffer in chief of Bengaluru FC, Ashley Westwood! 

A product of Manchester United Academy has joined the Jindal-backed football team to add another dimension to his coaching skills. Different country, different challenges, and one can only improve by doing something different from what would be done back at home. As Ashley puts, “For me to go and seek different experiences can only broaden my horizon as a coach.”  

The Bengaluru FC manager has set the right foot forward by getting the team organized and applying professional approach. Get the three magic mantras - Professionalism, Discipline, and Respect! Instill discipline, be punctual, eat proper diet, and stay focused. As the code of conduct says try respecting each other, applicable to every team members and coaching staff. 

With teams ‘no relegation’ acting as a cushion for building a strong team in coming years doesn’t succor Ashley much, “It may help from a company’s (JSW Sports) point of view but certainly not from a player’s or coaches. Whether you are immune to relegation or not, you set your standards and you want to achieve it.” He adds, “When you step on the pitch there is a certain element of pride and respect you want to earn and I don’t want to compromise on that!” 

Bengaluru FC is planning to play few friendlies before I-League starts. That will help the team to get an ideal combination and test the players in real match situation. 

The team currently is having 18 players, with a few on trials. The plan manager Ashley had is to set a core team, and then leave 5-6 slots vacant, “We plan to have a squad of around 25 players, Depending on the need, we will be filling up the remaining slots. Off-course, we are not going to invite 50 players for trials, instead, we would be testing a limited number in game situation, which will help us judge them better.” 

Any target he is setting for his team in this season, prompt response, “There is no set target, I just want to player to learn as much as possible, will be happy if they keep improving on weekly and monthly basis. We’ve improved on fitness and professionalism since we started training on last Monday.”

With defender John Johnson coming on board from day 1, the rest of the overseas players are setting their foot. Another defender, Curtis Osano has already landed in the city, and medio Johnny Menyongar will be arriving on Monday. 

To be continued... 

[VIDEO] Bengaluru FC Inauguration - AIFF President Prafull Patel's speech

In the inauguration event of the Bengaluru FC, at Bangalore Football Stadium on Saturday, July 20. After Introducing the Bengaluru FC players, it was time for AIFF President Prafull Patel's to speak something on the occasion.  

[VIDEO] Bengaluru FC Inauguration - Press Conference

Here's the video of the Press Conference of the inauguration event of the Bengaluru FC, held at Bangalore Football Stadium on Saturday, July 20. 

Bangalore Football gets Bengaluru Football Club!

With an electric show at the Bangalore Football Stadium, The JSW group announced the launch of its football team, Bengaluru Football Club (FC). Along with the name, the club also unveiled the squad, the crest and the team colors at the event. 

The new home of Bengaluru FC resounded with a battle of drums that saw local drummers come up against percussion styles from across the globe. Once the beats set the tone and mood for the evening, Bangalore-based folk-rock act Swarathma, in their signature, colorful style, got the crowds moving to their tunes.

A spectacular display of fireworks was used to unveil the name of the club followed by a dazzling laser show that revealed the club’s crest. The evening ended with the unveiling and introduction of the squad. 

The squad do far 

Sunil Chhetri, Robin Singh, John Johnson, Malemnganba Metei, Karan Sawhney, Gurtej Singh, Keegan Pereira, Darren Caldeira, Rino Anto, Bruno Colaco, Pawan Kumar, Don Bosco Andrew, Ricardo Cardozo, Lazorama Fanai, Vishal Kumar, Kutty Mani and Thoi Singh