ISL 2024-25: Kwame Peprah renews hope, Benali leads NorthEast United charge

Last season, there was considerable buzz surrounding Kwame Peprah’s performance in the Indian Super League. At just 22, the Ghanaian forward joined Kerala Blasters in August 2023, but seemed to lack confidence in front of goal and made several mistakes, frustrating many fans. Meanwhile, Dimitrios Diamantakos was in red-hot form, eventually winning the ISL’s Golden Boot. This likely left Peprah feeling isolated in the squad.

When questions arose about his form, then-Blasters head coach Ivan Vukomanović came to his defence, emphasising the young forward’s talent and urging for patience. Just as Peprah seemed to be finding his rhythm and making an impact, a groin injury sidelined him for a significant part of the season.

Now, East Bengal FC has snapped up Diamantakos, while Kerala Blasters has brought in fresh attacking talent, including Morocco-born Noah Sadaoui, the Durand Cup’s Golden Boot winner, and Spaniard Jesús Jiménez. With Vukomanović having departed and Swede Mikael Stahre stepping in as the new coach, Peprah is facing considerable pressure as the new ISL season begins.

The saviour

But Peprah is handling the pressure well, proving to be Kerala Blasters’ saviour with a late winner in its 2-1 victory over East Bengal FC, securing its first win of the season. In a dramatic twist, his goal came just 13 minutes after he was subbed in, stealing the spotlight from East Bengal’s Diamantakos.

The Blasters had lost its season opener 1-2 to Punjab FC, conceding two late goals. However, head coach Stahre made smart late substitutions for the next match against the Red and Gold.

“The reason we won is not just because of a strong starting lineup, but also because of a good ending lineup,” said Stahre after the victory.

“In the ISL, we see a lot of late goals every single week, even every single day. People talk about the starting lineup, but it’s also crucial who is on the field in the final minutes — to control the game, chase a goal, or whatever the situation calls for. Today, we were clearly the stronger team over the 90 minutes against a good opponent.”

READ | Mohammedan Sporting gets first-ever win in the league, beats Chennaiyin FC 1-0

Urgently needed: Goalkeeping school

While Stahre spoke confidently after Blasters’ win, Punjab FC head coach Panagiotis Dilmperis may have wanted to offer some advice to East Bengal FC goalkeeper Prabhsukhan Gill, who had a tough time when Peprah scored that stunning goal.

A former goalkeeper himself, Dilmperis strongly believes that India should establish a full-fledged goalkeeping school. “India should set up a national college for goalkeepers as soon as possible,” said the Greek coach, who played as a professional goalkeeper for 17 years before moving into coaching. “A school with goalkeeping coaches and teachers would develop goalkeepers from youth level to the professional ranks.”

Dilmperis pointed to his own country’s example: “In Greece, they started a goalkeeping school in 2015, and I studied there. Italy, Germany, Serbia, and South America all have similar programmes. India needs something like this. It’s very necessary.”

He went on to explain the importance of specialised training for goalkeepers: “Goalkeeping is a unique position, which is why they wear a different jersey. I love the position; everyone knows that. I work closely with my goalkeeping coach, Manish Timsina, who is highly professional and knowledgeable.”

Dilmperis, whose Punjab FC started the season strong with two consecutive wins, added, “We focus on teaching the tactics specific to the position, and I think the players are really responding to it.”

Stan Rayan

‘Slaps’ that shape fortunes

NorthEast United FC’s journey in the ISL has chronicled disjointed performances in the first decade of the country’s top football contest. The team, which by its nomenclature represents the most productive region of footballing talent in the country, has struggled for consistency, frequently changing coaches while trying to overcome the team’s failures.

However, there is a welcome break in this trend as the tournament enters its 11th season. The Highlanders are reinventing themselves under the astute leadership of Juan Pedro Benali. The seasoned Spanish gaffer has had a long coaching career, a good part of it spent managing clubs in Morocco, an emerging power in world football. Drawing on all his expertise and knowledge, Benali has managed to assemble a NorthEast United side with a good balance of domestic and foreign talent.

NorthEast United made the biggest headlines at the start of the new season as Benali’s boys defeated reigning ISL Shield champion Mohun Bagan Super Giant with a remarkable comeback to win the 133rd edition of the historic Durand Cup.

Does this create the perfect prelude to a successful ISL season? The coach responded with a philosophical answer: “You know time puts anyone in his place. Last season, time put us in our place. We missed many games, many points, and finally missed the play-off stage by a whisker. We have a young team that is learning. And we learn by slaps, by getting burned. We hope this season we don’t do the same thing.”

Benali felt that the small errors piled up to cause a big disappointment in the previous season. “Yeah, winning the Durand Cup gives us confidence and assurance that we are doing the right thing. But at the same time, we should not forget the ‘slaps’ we got last season. We have to keep that in mind as we plan for the long ISL season,” he added.

Instant impact: NorthEast United made the biggest headlines at the start of the new season as Juan Pedro Benali’s boys defeated reigning ISL Shield champion Mohun Bagan Super Giant to win its maiden Durand Cup. 
| Photo Credit:
Durand Cup Media

Benali’s words seemed to have resonated well with the team, as NorthEast United managed an injury-time goal to sneak a victory against Mohammedan Sporting in its first match. Benali’s philosophy and tactical acumen seem to be setting the team on the path to success.

Elsewhere, his ‘slap’ analogy appears to have resonated even deeper within Mohun Bagan SG’s ranks. The Mariners saw their vessel slipping into the doldrums as the team played a succession of draws, making the start to its season rather uninspiring.

The winning rhythm deserted the ISL shield winner after it began pre-season strongly under new coach Jose Molina with a 6-0 win against Indian Air Force in the Durand Cup group stage. Mohun Bagan beat Punjab FC and Bengaluru FC on penalties (after remaining tied in regulation time) to reach the final, where NorthEast United turned the tables on it and won the crown with successful conversions in the penalty shootout.

The ISL opener against Mumbai City FC also saw Mohun Bagan concede a two-goal lead to eventually end the match 2-2, before being held to a goalless draw by FC Ravshan of Tajikistan in its AFC Champions League Two group stage opener. The Salt Lake Stadium, the theatre of many success stories, suddenly became a stage of tragedy for Mohun Bagan SG. That was enough humiliation for a section of its fans, who blamed the coach for the team’s setback and chanted “Go back Molina” after the insipid performance against Ravshan.

Amitabha Das Sharma