FOOTBALL | Westwood faces tough task trying to reverse Blasters’ fortunes

Kerala Blasters is going through a nightmare. It is lying 13th among the 14 teams of the ISL, with five losses and a draw.

So Ashley Westwood has a task on his hands. The Englishman with a lot of experience in Indian football has taken over as the new coach, in place of the Spaniard David Catala.

He admits it is a big challenge. “I have to get some morale back, some confidence, some team spirit and to obviously try and improve performances,” Westwood, who had guided Bengaluru FC to the I-League title in the club’s first season, told The Hindu. “I have had a few chats with the players and the support staff.”

Westwood, a former England youth international who played for Bradford City in the English Premier League, said he accepted the job from the Blasters management because he wanted to help the team. “I know Indian football quite well,” he said. “I just wanted to come here and help. They reached out to me after the match against Punjab FC.”

The offer came to Westwood, who has also worked with ATK and RoundGlass Punjab, at the right time: he had left his coaching job with the Hong Kong national team. “Seven weeks, roughly, and seven games, so it fitted well for me at the minute,” he reasoned. “And I am happy to be with Blasters at Kochi, which is a fantastic city.”

He recalled how he spoiled the Blasters’ chances once while he was with ATK. “We had a very poor team at ATK and we ended up drawing with Kerala Blasters, which probably cost them the playoffs,” he said. “My old friend David James was their coach.”

Westwood said Blasters was one ISL club he would have been keen about at any rate. “Because of the fan base,” he said. “As a coach, you always want to go to clubs with fans. And Kerala Blasters arguably have the most fans in India.”

Westwood, a product of the famous Manchester United Academy where he could work with the coaching great Alex Ferguson, believes there is plenty of talent in Indian football, but a lot needs to be done.

“Infrastructure, of course, is always very important,” he said. “When you go to European places, you will find millions of football fields everywhere,” he said. “There are nice facilities to train at. You need to encourage young players to stick at their career. And you have to train the kids from an early age.”