Spanish flavour intensifies in ISL’s diverse melting pot

By Deepti Patwardhan|

Express News Service |

Published: 25th September 2018 06:33 AM

MUMBAI: It is impossible to escape the underlying ‘philosophy’ when talking about Spanish football. It is about elevating football to higher thinking, a complex art understood by the connoisseur. And it will once again be the dominant force in the Indian Super League this season with the influx of more coaches and players from sunny Spain.

This season, Bengaluru FC, Delhi Dynamos, FC Goa, Jamshedpur FC and FC Pune City will all be marshalled by Spanish coaches. The number has steadily grown from one in in 2014, to three in 2017-18, to five this year. Spain also leads the list in the most number of foreign players: 20 out of 70. Brazil is a distant second with nine. “The ball is my girlfriend, keep it close,” says Pune coach Miguel Angel Portugal, summing up the Spanish football philosophy in a nutshell. “Spanish players don’t like playing directly, they like playing for possession.

The conditioning, quality of Indian players is like that of Spanish players. They are not strong (physically). They rely more on skill.” The possession-based, quick passing game is inbred in players from Spain. The changing flavour of the ISL was evident last season when Goa’s Ferran Corominas topped the league’s scoring charts with 18 goals. While Delhi and Goa deployed it with some success last year, it’s a difficult template to adapt for the Indian players.

“The Indian players are getting better,” says Josep Tato, who returns to the league as an assistant coach at FC Goa. “Where they lacked was in tactical movement, they didn’t have the base. In Spain, we learn these basics at the age of five and by the time we are 14-15 years old, we can do everything instinctively. The Indian players are learning this now.” While Indian players are learning new moves, Spanish coaches are still relying heavily on players from their own country to bring their vision to life. Real Madrid product Marcos Tebar, for example, gave up a few offers in Europe (including Spain) to come back to India and play for new coach Josep Gombau at Delhi Dynamos. “We, foreign players, come here not just to keep the standard of the league high but also of the Indian players,” says Tebar. “Spanish style may be a little difficult to get used to.

It’s a different training. More time on the ball, you have to work with the ball in every part of training. This will develop the league and the Indian players too.” As much as Spanish football is a delightful mix of cheek and chic, it is about downright populism. Why thread one pass when six can do? They weave an endless web of passing to draw in the audience and keep them there. “When you are from Spain, you grow up with this philosophy.

I am from Barcelona and this is the only way I understand football,” says Gombau. “We like to have the ball and keep attacking. We need to make the people who come to watch enjoy the game. We have that responsibility. Especially in a growing league like the one in India, where football is not the main sport. No one is going to be happy if the game ends nil-nil.” sports@newindianexpress.com