SINGAPORE - When Akbar Nawas took over as head coach of Chennai City last year, the Indian football club had only three games to stave off relegation from the I-League.
They beat Churchill Brothers 3-1, lost 7-1 to East Bengal, before securing safety with a 2-1 win over Minerva Punjab in their final match.
A year later, former Tampines Rovers coach Akbar, assisted by ex-Hougang United coach and fellow Singaporean K. Balagumaran, helped Chennai complete a remarkable turnaround after Saturday's (March 9) come-from-behind 3-1 win over Minerva at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Tamil Nadu sealed a first league title for both club and coach.
With 13 wins, four draws and three defeats, they amassed 43 points, one ahead of second-placed East Bengal.
It is believed that the duo are the first Singaporean coaches to win a professional football league title outside of South-east Asia.
And they did it in swashbuckling style, scoring 48 goals in 20 matches, and never relinquishing their place at the top of the 11-team league from the third match week.
The Times of India summarised their triumph as "befitting their dominant campaign, the fulcrum of which was a sustained possession-based football".
Akbar, 43, told The Straits Times: "It is a great satisfaction after accepting the challenge of taking over a relegation-threatened team, and then winning the league within a year.
"Our team perform best when we are chasing the game. Thus, we didn't panic when we were behind (against Minerva on Saturday). I told the team we must end every attack with a chance at goal. I was pretty confident we could bounce back and win like we had done before."
Â
His sidekick Balagumaran, 54, added: "It is so overwhelming, I don't know if we are still in a dream.
"When we got here, the players we had were not from football academies, they were from the streets and so unpolished.
"Many of them are playing in their first professional season and now they have won their first professional league title.
"Personally, it is also the highlight of my career, but I hope there is more to come, and I also hope this opens the door for more Singaporean coaches to venture abroad."
With the league win, Chennai are eligible for the 2020 AFC Champions League qualifiers.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Juventus will be kept away from the United States by organisers of next summer's International Champions Cup , Juventus Won't Play in US ICC Matches Amid Rape Investigation
Ronaldo will avoid US tour amid rape allegations | The Daily Star
NBA Finals 2019: Warriors may have just begun greatest comeback of their reign, yet it feels completely empty The loss of Durant cast a shadow over what was an impressive comeback win
Cornerback Covering Tips - Be A Great Cornerback
Football: Liverpool's miracle comeback trumps Spurs', say fans in Singapore straitstimes.com - SAZALI ABDUL AZIZ Virgil van Dijk Claims 'Anything Is Still Possible' as Liverpool & Man City Prepare for Title Finale
Football Raddy Avramovic Could Make Shock Return To Singapore
At Ajax, One Star Goes, Another Is Going, and More Are Always
Norway 3 Nigeria 0. Ada Hegerberg was not needed as Norway kicked off their women's World Cup Group A campaign with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Nigeria on Saturday.. Without Ballon d'Or
Football: Hegerberg-less Norway canter past Nigeria in women
allmysportsnews.com/soccer/football-hegerberg-less-norway-canter-past-nigeria-in-womens-world-cup/
Football: Hegerberg-less Norway canter past Nigeria in women's World Cup Posted on 06/08/2019 REIMS, France (REUTERS) - Ada Hegerberg was not needed as Norway kicked off their women's World Cup Group A campaign with a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Nigeria on Saturday (June 8).
Soccer: Hegerberg-less Norway canter past Nigeria - Reuters.com
Messi's motivation spurs on Barcelona, says Rakitic. BARCELONA: Ivan Rakitic has said Lionel Messi's desire to win the Champions League is proving an inspiration for Barcelona ahead of their Champions League semi-final first leg against Liverpool on Wednesday.
Messi's motivation spurs on Barcelona, says Rakitic
Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric has criticised Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for choosing not to attend this month's ceremony where he was given the award, saying their decision was unfair to
Luka Modric wins Ballon d'Or 2018, breaks decade-long Ronaldo
Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri is confident Gonzalo Higuain can be the short-term solution to his side's need for goals and urged the Argentine to earn a permanent move to the Premier League.
Sarri challenges Higuain to earn permanent Chelsea deal
Football: Placing faith in home-grown talent is the way forward for Valencia, says club president Anil Murthy Club president Anil Murthy said the reason for Valencia's recent stability is down
Latest VALENCIA | The Straits Times
JUST IN: Dembele takes part in full training ahead of United clash Viktoria Myznikova 1 month ago Sport 25 Comments Ousmane Dembele has trained with the team on Monday without experiencing any problems.
Captain Hugo Lloris admitted he was worried about Tottenham's domestic form — and it had to change fast — after his Champions League quarter-finalists surrendered to strugglers Southampton. And with no "joker" left to play in the race for the top four, last summer's World Cup winning skipper challenged his two-faced team to win every
Fred warns Manchester United team-mates ahead of Spurs clash
Kean subject to racist abuse, Juve teammate Bonucci says he incited crowd Emmeline Moore 03 Apr 2019 12:36 Despite scoring for Juventus, Moise Kean (centre) had a frustrating night in Cagliari as
Leonardo Bonucci Issues Tone-Deaf '50-50 Blame' Reaction to
Stubborn Sarri unruffled as Blues flop again. Midfielder Ander Herrera heading past Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga to score Manchester United's opening goal in their 2-0 FA Cup fifth-round
Hudson-Odoi finally stretches his legs as glum Sarri takes
Four gray wolves (Canis lupus) have been airdropped into Michigan for a very important assignment. The quartet, originally from Canada, has been helicoptered into Isle Royale national park to
How to Own a Pet Wolf: 14 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow
0 comments:
Post a Comment