TEAM TRACKER: Depth, precision, guidance and a little bit of mystery defines FC Pune City
LOSING THE MARQUEE days before the campaign kicks off is always a blow. Especially when the marquee is someone like Eidur Gudjohnsen who is pretty much supposed to be the focal point of the attack, and has been throughout the pre-season.
Without Gudjohnsen in the squad, the Pune City forward line looks half as threatening. Jesus Tato can't be the lone man up front, while Ndoye and Anibal Zurdo aren't people you bet the season on. But the way the Pune City management handled the absence of their marquee striker by getting Mohamed Sissoko in at the last moment, many would be forgiven for thinking that it actually turned out to be a good thing for them.
But it wasn't a good thing. The Pune City forward so far hasn't been that effective. The opening game against Mumbai City showed as much. Which is why, the quick action from head coach Habas and the upper echelons of the franchise deserves credit: instead of looking for a like-for-like marquee they got a player who could fix another glaring hole in their formation: the midfield.
Eugeneson Lyngdoh was, and still is, away playing in the AFC Cup for Bengaluru FC. Habas had the whole season to plan for an attacking midfield without the Indian international, but even at the end of it it didn't seem to have the solidity that Eugeneson, with his top notch passing game and eye for converting half of quarter chances, would bring to it. And that's what we saw in the first game: there was a gap between the midfield and the attackers. But that situation turned around when Habas introduced Mohamed Sissoko, a defensive midfielder with some crisp passing game, into the equation.
The former Liverpool, Valencia and Juventus player is a defensive midfielder, but in the match against FC Goa which Pune won, Sissoko was placed just ahead of the two central medios, Jonatan Lucca and Dharmaraj Ravanan. And the difference was obvious. Not only did he link up well with Jesus Tato on the right wing and Arata Izumi on the left, he was a great help latching onto some chief opponent strikers during set-pieces of which there were quite a few. Stuck into the central defensive midfield, Dharmaraj Ravanan did a decent job; but there's little doubt that once Eugeneson comes back, he an make way for Sissoko in that position while Lyngdoh takes on the role of the attacking midfielder behind Rodriguez (or the new striker that they are looking to sign as a replacement for their other injured foreigner Andre Bikey).
The reason Pune City are suddenly looking like a team competent enough to make it to the top four and beyond is the win they pulled off against FC Goa. And that was the result of a calculated gameplay from Antonio Habas, who has become something of an ISL veteran by now. In fact, the very way this Pune City squad is built shows that typical ISL formula: stick most Indians in defence, let the foreigners handle the attack. The Stallions have signed an exceptionally good foreign keeper in Apoula Edel from Chennaiyin FC, but other than him the only other overseas player at the back is defender Eduardo Ferreira. And with the roster deep with Indian defenders like Narayan Ds, Rahul Bheke, Augustin, Yumnam Raju, Zodingliana Ralte, Dharmaraj Ravanan an Gouramangi Singh, it's safe to say the idea is to switch to an all-Indian back four any tie there's a pressing need to attack. Even Edel can make way for an experienced Arindam Bhattacharya.
Which means with a little bit of tweaking, Pune can have a midfield of Bruno, Sissoko, Lucca and Eugeneson, with two competent foreign strikers ahead, one of whom is yet to be revealed. That's depth, talent, precision striking capability and a degree of mystery all rolled into one, headed by Habas, one of the most successful coaches in ISL.
So the other teams are going to take a while to figure this team out, and the way it can shape-shift from a game-killing possessional play machine to a sudden counter strike force. And by the time they do that, the Stallions may already have enough points in their stable to take them into the playoffs. And as ISL has demonstrated time and again, once the semis come around, all bets are irrevocably off.
