PRE-SEASON PANGS: Not a great European sojourn, but Dynamos emerge tougher
DELHI DYNAMOS DELIVERED a fair bit of good news to their fans during the team-building phase by snapping up players like John Arne Riise, Hans Mulder, Robin Singh, Florent Malouda and of course, their marquee player-coach Roberto Carlos. On Saturday they added further spice in the build-up to the season ahead by having a star-studded event — in front of the Taj Mahal, no less — to launch their brand new kit. But in between that were 18 days where the players went through the grind and became a team, far away from their home city.
The much-touted European sojourn that was the DEN Network owned franchise's pre-season tour saw them visit Sweden and Denmark, make good use of the training facilities at some of the clubs over there, and play four friendly matches. Although the friendlies themselves did not go too well for the Dynamos, testing the players against seasoned European clubs might have provided them the extra bit of toughening up that will make it easier for them to cope with the congested, demanding ISL schedule ahead of them.
The team left India on 31st August. They were thrown into battle pretty fast, after only 3 days of arrival, against Varbergs BoIS FC. The 90-year-old club plays in Sweden's 2nd tier league, the Superettan. The match created quite a buzz in Swedish media because of the presence of star names like Carlos and Riise in the Dynamos squad. Back home, there was a marketing push on the franchise's part to reach out to their fans, by live streaming the match on their official website.
A 3-1 defeat greeted the Lions in their first pre-season friendly. But the resullt wasn't so bad for a newly-assembled Indian club playing against a Swedish team. And there were moments in the game that gave them hope. At the very beginning, for example, the Dynamos put together an attack that allowed Malouda invade the opponent penalty box and take a shot at the goal but hit the post. As the ball bounced off the woodwork back into the playing area, Malouda recovered the ball after a scuffle and took another shot, but he hit the post again. And it wasn't like they were being completely outplayed. The Delhi team controlled the ball and passed around with remarkable ease, especially in the second half. And then there was that beauty of a goal from John Arne Riise, resulting from a grass-slicing low free kick that left the wall as well as the keeper equally stunned.
It was a physically taxing match but the Dynamos had no time to relax. They went back to their camp and resumed training the next day because coming up on September 10th was their toughest match of the pre-season and pehaps their short history of existence as they were to take on a Swedish top tier club, Bollklubben Häcken. Based in Gothenburg, BK Häcken were established in 1940. They play in the Allsvenskan, the highest league in Sweden, where they finished 5th last season. Sensing the gravity of the situation, Roberto Carlos put 9 foreigners in the starting line-up, something they cannot do in ISL. But all that shielding up came to nothing, once the ball got rolling.
The result was a 7-2 pounding for Delhi Dynamos. The game brought out many of the team's flaws as inadequate communication between defenders saw the opponent strikers break past them time and again. After going down 2-0, a couple of good saves by keeper Ravi Kumar and a goal by West Bromwich loanee Adil Nabi created the hope of a comeback, but all that was proved to be for nought as in the second half, Häcken players took advantage of their superior stamina and pressed the Dynamos against the wall. There was no escape for the captive Lions.
But a chance to take their harsh lessons and move on to something that would boost their morale a bit was just around the corner for Delhi Dynamos as on 13th September they took on Skene IF. A club that plays in the Swedish 3rd Division (5th tier) league, Skene are were a significantly easier side to face. So the Dynamos went in all guns blazing.
A 3-2 victory saw the Dynamos taste their first success of the pre-season that day. Adil Nabi scored twice. Malouda got on the scoresheet too. The Lions' midfield looked more supple, and they roamed the final third with purpose. They did not look subdued when they went a goal down at the beginning, and Malouda's long-ranger would make a top quality Vine. Robin Singh made his debut as he came on as a substitute and got an assist. The defensive flaws, visible here and there, were still a worry, but overall improvement is a time-taking process.
They left Sweden after this game and headed for Denmark where they played Danish 1st Division (second tier) club FC Vestsjælland. The last match on the Dynamos' pre-season tour, this game saw both player-coach Roberto Carlos and forward Robin Singh in the starting line-up for the first time. During the game, the Lions went toe to toe with their opponents with remarkable ease. They enjoyed more of the possession and even came close to scoring, stopped by the crossbar when Gustavo Mermentini dos Santos's shot left the Vestsjælland keeper stranded. Adil Nabi was bright as always, too. The game was a 0-0 draw but it was enough to allow Roberto Carlos' men to return to India with a newfound confidence and a hope to put up a worthy fight come October.
Even from a marketing point of view, the tour was a success. The local media followed the team closely. The presence of a legend like Roberto Carlos helped. Local fans were curious about the team too. All this helps build the Dynamos' brand image, as well as that of ISL and Indian football. The Dynamos' took part in some events, too, to endorse some good causes. They attended an ice hockey match for players with Down Syndrom to help raise awareness about the illness. Which is not bad at all.
Now that they are back in India, it will be interesting to see how they react to the Indian conditions. The Delhi Dynamos, like almost all other ISL teams, depend heavily on their foreign players, and most of them are not very familiar with the Indian conditions. But the Lions are not alone in this, as every ISL franchise, except Kerala Blasters, has chosen to hold their pre-season abroad. How Roberto Carlos and John Arne Riise react to the Indian heat and the ISL's intense scheduling will be interesting to see. For now, however, it appears that the Delhi Dynamos have returned from Europe a tougher, better-coordinated unit.
