Aizawl’s dream run a golden chapter in Indian football
If you are a football fan, then it is safe to assume that you are familiar with Leicester City’s place in the history of the game.
But, what may have eluded many people’s attention is that a somewhat similar story is slowly taking shape in the I-League this season and Mizoram’s Aizawl FC is at the centre of this fascinating fairytale.
Aizawl FC is currently in the lead with 29 points and are well on their way to an epic title win. They have been an absolute revelation this season having proved their mettle against big clubs. However, seven months ago, the situation was completely different.
TOUGH JOURNEY
At the end of last season, Aizwal FC were relegated in spite of finishing one place above bottomplaced DSK Shivajians.
The Pune-based side had relegation immunity due to their corporate-backed direct entry into the tournament.
Aizawl, then, produced brilliant performances to beat I-League champions Bengaluru FC twice in the Federation Cup over two legs and reached the final of the competition for the first time.
Their impressive showing got them reinstated in the I-league this season.
PIVOTAL POINT
The side secured the services of former Mumbai FC head coach Khalid Jamil and that turned out to be a pivotal point.
The Kuwait-born Indian footballer was at the helm of Mumbai FC for eight years and he was a huge reason behind their constant presence in the I-League.
But, the shift was not difficult for Jamil who settled quickly in his new role.
“It was not tough for me to go accustomed in Aizawl and once I found out about the huge support behind the club, it served as an extra motivation”, Jamil told Hindustan Times.
FREE-FLOWING GAME
Over the years, Jamil was accused of playing defensive football and resorting to time wasting antics when his team is in the lead.
However, there have been no such complaints this season as Aizawl FC has played a beautiful brand of free-flowing football and although their goalscoring record has not been off the charts, they have consistently achieved the desired results.
“One needs to change their game plan according to the situation and that’s what we’ve done,” he said.
Jamil inherited a side which is filled with exciting local players, but he also added four new ones.
Jayesh Rane and Ashutosh Mehta followed him from Mumbai and he signed the experienced foreign duo of Mahmoud Al-Amenah and Alfred Jaryan. They provided a lot of strength to the young squad (13 of their players are aged 22 or under) and the results speak for themselves.
“We have played effective football in all our matches and that has been the main reason behind our success,” Jayesh said.
With just five games remaining in the season, Aizwal FC are agonisingly close to scripting a perfect end to their fairytale and like Leicester City, this is also a story for the ages.