#TFGinterview: FC Pune City CEO Modwel on football club sustainability, closed merged league
THE OCCASION WAS the launch of a FC Pune City's new co-owner and brand ambassador at a hotel in Mumbai. On October 26, Arjun Kapoor was announced as the new face of the Pune-based Indian Super League franchise.
Gaurav Modwel, the CEO of the team, introduced the new brand ambassador and co-owner to the media present. The Fan Garage, too present among the invitees, had a conversation with Gaurav Modwel on host of topics from a look-back at a successful year with the youth teams to building infrastructure for continued development and discussion on the way forward for Indian football in the coming years.
FC Pune City had an eventful last yearstarting with their Under 11 team winning the Adidas Uprising Tournament, the Under 18 team won the IFA Shield and the Women's team also won trophies. Taking pride on the achievements by the youth teams, Modwel expressed,
"It's part of our philosophy. Right from the beginning we were very keen on putting out our youth teams. We have our residential academy, maintain and run about four pitches to be able to have the infrastructure to do it. The under 18, in the regional rounds out of 8 we won 7 and drew one. In the U18 national league we just lost one game"
Going on to talk about how the team has done more than just winning trophies,
"The part that gives me thrills is where the Under-18 boys are right now. About four or five are in the Indian Super League with us, two in the main and two in the reserve. Three boys are going on loan to Chennai City, Yasir has gone to FC Goa on loan in the ISL, another one Chesterpaul Lyngdoh who has gone to Mohun Bagan. About five boys will be part of the reserves of Bengaluru and Kerala. Three of our own are also part of the India Under-19 squad that will be playing the AFC qualifiers. So from one team we are feeding, I-League, India Under-19 and our own team as well"
FCPC has participated in the local tournament this year. Asked if there has been an increase in the number of local talent and native children joining the teams, Modwel replied saying that is a bigger challenge and with time there will be a rise in number of players from Maharashtra and Pune as well.
The success of Pune City's academy could be attributed to the academy of Pune FC which they took over after Pune FC shut down. Modwel did acknowledge the contribution of the Pune FC's academy and added that many changes were made to the academy after they took over. He shared,
"Yes definitely! There are still lot of those boys from the academy. We brought in some boys from the AIFF setup and there are boys that we scouted in a very short time. For example Gani was not playing for any academy when we scouted him. The fact is the Pune FC set up did help us a lot."
Modwel added,
"We made lot of changes like getting in UEFA Pro coach Roger Lamesa and the kind of tie ups and physical training we had, we tried taking it the next level"
The team met up with the fan club Orange Army recently and he shared the experience of seeing the fan club grow over the years. He said,
"Orange Army is like family to us. The first time we met them it was just 21 people there now they are in thousands. The core group has also grown. Recently what we have done is, we have started aligning ourselves with supporters fan club of Europeans clubs and they are seeing merit is having their own club at the city level"
He went on to add,
"Lot of football fans in India are La Liga and English Premier league fans. These fans are far off from the real feel of the game and miss the connect with your own city club. Going to matches and seeing players is what many of these fans have not experienced. And that is the role we are playing with Arjun Kapoor on board with us. He says come to the stadium and start enjoying that atmosphere"
FC Pune City made a strategic tie-up with Chanmari FC from Aizawl in the month of May, this year. We enquired about the activities that have happened in that regard in about five months since the tie-up.
"The association has been fruitful till now. Within a few months, we have already signed two players from there, a midfielder and a striker, Joe and Jacob . It is a two-way process, we help them get better coaches and support them by doing larger scouting. Since they become a feeder, they are getting in much better players in Chanmari. For example, the player we signed Joe, he was playing for Shillong Lajong Under 18 last season. He moved to Chanmari because he saw they club feeding to FC Pune City."
Talking on the effect India hosting the Under 17 World Cup will have on the country, the CEO in his opening speech of the day mentioned the attendance is set to be the highest ever in history and shed light further on the topic saying,
"It is a shot in the arm. I heard for the semi final between Spain and Mali had upwards of 35,000 people. Now that says a lot for a World Cup game where India had lost earlier in the tournament. These events do bolster and bring the community together. It’s a long-drawn sustained effort to achieve a revolution to get better infrastructure, coaches. It is not a day's work. It is not a pill that one takes and it starts taking an effect to make India a footballing nation. It is a long process"
CEO Modwel continued to talk about the change needed after the World Cup,
"We used to be so good in football in the 50's and 60's and something happened to us. Professionalism went out, we never invested in the sport, the interest started coming down, nepotism kicked in, corruption came in, players were not treated well. Apathy for such a long period has lead us the situation where we are. Salaries of players have to go up. Now we have 150-170 players earning that number should up"
To a thought of seeing more teams playing in the top division to see more development, he answered,
"If it happens then it's great. The I-League needs more investment to make it happen, more professionalism by not just a few but all teams. For ISL to expand there are many people and if it were to be the top tier, if can expanding to 14 or 16 teams. I can start pointing at fingers at all stakeholders. Like fans can pick up Rs 500 rupee tickets and flock in the stadium in numbers so the club also has more money. If the fans don’t find it exciting, the cycle doesn't start. Clubs don’t have enough money to get in good players and can't pay. So the juniors don't want to become footballers because they don't see much money and as a viable career option"
ISL VS I-LEAGUE: FC PUNE CITY OUTCLASS MOHUN BAGAN 4-1 IN A PRE-SEASON FRIENDLY
Indian Super League (ISL) side FC Pune City thrashed I-League giants Mohun Bagan 4-1 in a pre-season friendly match in Pune on Monday. Emiliano Alfaro struck twice and Ajay Singh and Isaac Vanmalsawma scored one goal each for the home team, while Dipanda Dicka struck the only goal for the Kolkata-based side.
Coach Sanjay Sen fielded his team in a 4-4-2 formation with foreign players in action. Star player Sony Norde played his first match for Mohun Bagan this season. Rana Gharami partnered Eze Kingsley in the central defence, while Australian midfielder Diogo started in the central midfield alongside Raynier Fernandes. Narohari Shrestha was paired up front with Dipanda Dicka.
The hosts started the game with a 4-3-3 formation, lining Marcelinho, Emiliano Alfaro and Robertino Pugliara upfront.
The match was even-steven for the first half an hour until Pune scored broke the deadlock. Emiliano Alfaro scored from the penalty spot before the teams went into the break.
Alfaro scored another goal from open play early in the second half. Substitute Ajay Singh increased the lead further and sealed the fate of the game.
Dipanda Dicka pulled one back for the Green and Maroons around the 70th-minute mark but the final nail in Bagan’s coffin was hammered in by Isaac Vanmalsawma minutes before full time.
After beating East Bengal 2-1 last week in a friendly, Pune have now defeated another Kolkata giant Mohun Bagan convincingly. The performance of Pune’s front three, Alfaro in particular, will be a great boost for the side ahead of the ISL season 4 which starts from November 17.
ISL 2017: FC PUNE CITY TO FACE CHENNAIYIN FC THIS WEEKEND
Two Indian Super League (ISL) have never played against each other as part of their pre-season preparations in the last three seasons. The ISL teams have always competed only during the length of the competition.
However, that is set to change this weekend when FC Pune City are to host Chennaiyin FC on November 12 in Pune for a pre-season friendly.
While Ranko Popovic’s side have conducted their pre-season training in the city of Pune, Chennaiyin trained first in Chennai before embarking on a trip to Thailand. Since their return almost a week back, they have been training in Chennai.
It is however, believed that the match between the two said ISL teams would be behind closed doors. Interestingly, neither team has officially mentioned of the clash on their social media handles as yet.
FC Pune City's Isaac and Lalchhuanmawia raring to go
FC Pune City has endured a mixed few months heading into the latest season of the Indian Super League (ISL). ISL winning coach Antonio Lopez Habas was at the centre of the club’s player recruitment where it purchased some of the best foreign imports from the previous seasons and a few promising Indian players. With a first-ever playoff berth around, the manager parted ways with the club after differences in opinion with the board of directors.
Incoming manager Ranko Popovic helped himself and his side to two wins in two friendlies against I-League giants East Bengal FC and Mohun Bagan, a 4-1 thrashing of the latter earlier in the week. Among the goal-scorers was midfielder Isaac Vanmalsawma, 21, who was picked up by the Stallions for a price of Rs. 15 lakh in the domestic draft in July.
With the likes of Marcelinho, the 2016 Golden Boot winner, and established striker Emiliano Alfaro in the ranks, Isaac is keen not to shirk his responsibility. “I want to be one among the players if I get to play, to be as one of the players under the spotlight,” the India international tells Sportstar.
Isaac realises that his time on the pitch could be limited due to the strong squad assembled. “No, no (pressure) at all. The most important thing is to get game time. Whenever I get a chance to play I want to prove myself,” he said.
The Mizoram-born player is also relishing the prospect of brushing shoulders with and against top players from around the world in the coming months. The young attacking midfielder has been taking lessons from Spanish midfield lynchpin Marcos Tebar during the pre-season camp. “I asked him how to receive the ball in the space and how to have a good body position while in an offensive position.”
The former Shillong Lajong graduate also had praise for his new coach Popovic for helping him settle into the new club. “He is friendly to everyone and helps the players on and off the field.”
Pune picked up another player from Mizoram during the off season, who was born not far away from Isaac’s hometown, Lunglei. Lalchhuanmawia Fanai, better known as Chhuantea, was bought for Rs. 45 lakh to add weight to an inexperienced defensive fold at the Maharashtra based club.
Fanai did not have professional training in his early days and it had not been a straight trajectory to top level football for him. Having started his career as a left winger, his coach at Punjab-based side JCT FC deployed him at left full-back during a game in 2009. Talking of the transition, he tells Sportstar, “It was not easy at first to adjust. It’s a very different position. I had to learn a lot about defending and now I am comfortable in that position.”
Fanai, 28, has not looked back since then. He has represented Lajong and Bengaluru FC, where he won his first league title in 2016. His exploits at BFC earned him his first India cap and an ISL contract with Mumbai City FC on loan. An opportunity to play in the ISL for a second year running was derailed after picking up a knee injury which required surgery.
With the new season kicking off on November 17, the onus of organising a relatively young backline will be on Fanai and new recruit Marco Lopez. “We have had a good pre-season so far where we conceded only twice. We are working on combinations to help us as a team. They might look like young players but they are shaping up well. It's not an easy competition. We have to give our 100% against these teams,” Fanai says.
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They are anyway bitter rivals of the "Maha Derby"
#TFGinterview: FC Pune City CEO Modwel on football club sustainability, closed merged league
THE OCCASION WAS the launch of a FC Pune City's new co-owner and brand ambassador at a hotel in Mumbai. On October 26, Arjun Kapoor was announced as the new face of the Pune-based Indian Super League franchise.
Gaurav Modwel, the CEO of the team, introduced the new brand ambassador and co-owner to the media present. The Fan Garage, too present among the invitees, had a conversation with Gaurav Modwel on host of topics from a look-back at a successful year with the youth teams to building infrastructure for continued development and discussion on the way forward for Indian football in the coming years.
FC Pune City had an eventful last yearstarting with their Under 11 team winning the Adidas Uprising Tournament, the Under 18 team won the IFA Shield and the Women's team also won trophies. Taking pride on the achievements by the youth teams, Modwel expressed,
Going on to talk about how the team has done more than just winning trophies,
FCPC has participated in the local tournament this year. Asked if there has been an increase in the number of local talent and native children joining the teams, Modwel replied saying that is a bigger challenge and with time there will be a rise in number of players from Maharashtra and Pune as well.
The success of Pune City's academy could be attributed to the academy of Pune FC which they took over after Pune FC shut down. Modwel did acknowledge the contribution of the Pune FC's academy and added that many changes were made to the academy after they took over. He shared,
Modwel added,
The team met up with the fan club Orange Army recently and he shared the experience of seeing the fan club grow over the years. He said,
FC Pune City made a strategic tie-up with Chanmari FC from Aizawl in the month of May, this year. We enquired about the activities that have happened in that regard in about five months since the tie-up.
Talking on the effect India hosting the Under 17 World Cup will have on the country, the CEO in his opening speech of the day mentioned the attendance is set to be the highest ever in history and shed light further on the topic saying,
CEO Modwel continued to talk about the change needed after the World Cup,
ISL VS I-LEAGUE: FC PUNE CITY OUTCLASS MOHUN BAGAN 4-1 IN A PRE-SEASON FRIENDLY
Indian Super League (ISL) side FC Pune City thrashed I-League giants Mohun Bagan 4-1 in a pre-season friendly match in Pune on Monday. Emiliano Alfaro struck twice and Ajay Singh and Isaac Vanmalsawma scored one goal each for the home team, while Dipanda Dicka struck the only goal for the Kolkata-based side.
Coach Sanjay Sen fielded his team in a 4-4-2 formation with foreign players in action. Star player Sony Norde played his first match for Mohun Bagan this season. Rana Gharami partnered Eze Kingsley in the central defence, while Australian midfielder Diogo started in the central midfield alongside Raynier Fernandes. Narohari Shrestha was paired up front with Dipanda Dicka.
The hosts started the game with a 4-3-3 formation, lining Marcelinho, Emiliano Alfaro and Robertino Pugliara upfront.
The match was even-steven for the first half an hour until Pune scored broke the deadlock. Emiliano Alfaro scored from the penalty spot before the teams went into the break.
Alfaro scored another goal from open play early in the second half. Substitute Ajay Singh increased the lead further and sealed the fate of the game.
Dipanda Dicka pulled one back for the Green and Maroons around the 70th-minute mark but the final nail in Bagan’s coffin was hammered in by Isaac Vanmalsawma minutes before full time.
After beating East Bengal 2-1 last week in a friendly, Pune have now defeated another Kolkata giant Mohun Bagan convincingly. The performance of Pune’s front three, Alfaro in particular, will be a great boost for the side ahead of the ISL season 4 which starts from November 17.
looking forward to see Alfaro , he is in good form
among Indians Ajay singh,adil khan and lewis
ISL 2017: FC PUNE CITY TO FACE CHENNAIYIN FC THIS WEEKEND
Two Indian Super League (ISL) have never played against each other as part of their pre-season preparations in the last three seasons. The ISL teams have always competed only during the length of the competition.
However, that is set to change this weekend when FC Pune City are to host Chennaiyin FC on November 12 in Pune for a pre-season friendly.
While Ranko Popovic’s side have conducted their pre-season training in the city of Pune, Chennaiyin trained first in Chennai before embarking on a trip to Thailand. Since their return almost a week back, they have been training in Chennai.
It is however, believed that the match between the two said ISL teams would be behind closed doors. Interestingly, neither team has officially mentioned of the clash on their social media handles as yet.
FC Pune City's Isaac and Lalchhuanmawia raring to go
FC Pune City has endured a mixed few months heading into the latest season of the Indian Super League (ISL). ISL winning coach Antonio Lopez Habas was at the centre of the club’s player recruitment where it purchased some of the best foreign imports from the previous seasons and a few promising Indian players. With a first-ever playoff berth around, the manager parted ways with the club after differences in opinion with the board of directors.
Incoming manager Ranko Popovic helped himself and his side to two wins in two friendlies against I-League giants East Bengal FC and Mohun Bagan, a 4-1 thrashing of the latter earlier in the week. Among the goal-scorers was midfielder Isaac Vanmalsawma, 21, who was picked up by the Stallions for a price of Rs. 15 lakh in the domestic draft in July.
With the likes of Marcelinho, the 2016 Golden Boot winner, and established striker Emiliano Alfaro in the ranks, Isaac is keen not to shirk his responsibility. “I want to be one among the players if I get to play, to be as one of the players under the spotlight,” the India international tells Sportstar.
Isaac realises that his time on the pitch could be limited due to the strong squad assembled. “No, no (pressure) at all. The most important thing is to get game time. Whenever I get a chance to play I want to prove myself,” he said.
The Mizoram-born player is also relishing the prospect of brushing shoulders with and against top players from around the world in the coming months. The young attacking midfielder has been taking lessons from Spanish midfield lynchpin Marcos Tebar during the pre-season camp. “I asked him how to receive the ball in the space and how to have a good body position while in an offensive position.”
The former Shillong Lajong graduate also had praise for his new coach Popovic for helping him settle into the new club. “He is friendly to everyone and helps the players on and off the field.”
Pune picked up another player from Mizoram during the off season, who was born not far away from Isaac’s hometown, Lunglei. Lalchhuanmawia Fanai, better known as Chhuantea, was bought for Rs. 45 lakh to add weight to an inexperienced defensive fold at the Maharashtra based club.
Fanai did not have professional training in his early days and it had not been a straight trajectory to top level football for him. Having started his career as a left winger, his coach at Punjab-based side JCT FC deployed him at left full-back during a game in 2009. Talking of the transition, he tells Sportstar, “It was not easy at first to adjust. It’s a very different position. I had to learn a lot about defending and now I am comfortable in that position.”
Fanai, 28, has not looked back since then. He has represented Lajong and Bengaluru FC, where he won his first league title in 2016. His exploits at BFC earned him his first India cap and an ISL contract with Mumbai City FC on loan. An opportunity to play in the ISL for a second year running was derailed after picking up a knee injury which required surgery.
With the new season kicking off on November 17, the onus of organising a relatively young backline will be on Fanai and new recruit Marco Lopez. “We have had a good pre-season so far where we conceded only twice. We are working on combinations to help us as a team. They might look like young players but they are shaping up well. It's not an easy competition. We have to give our 100% against these teams,” Fanai says.