Panaji: Abhik Chatterjee has experience in top-flight football in India with a spell in it Odisha FCNorthEast United FC and Conquest of Hyderabadbut nothing could prepare him for the pace at Kerala Blasters. Appointed as CEO last month, Chatterjee finds life in the fast lane of Indian football with everything moving at “100 miles an hour.” In this interview with TOI, he explains why there is so much difference at Blasters, investment strategy, player signings, going forward and, more importantly, why he feels the club is “not far away” from winning trophies. Edited quote…
It has been a month
Here, things move at 100 miles an hour. It’s obviously a club where people care, and when people care, there are expectations. I catch up with the expectations that have been set as a vision. There are many things that fans want. The idea is to observe and then see how we can make changes and reach a conclusion where everyone – the fans, the owners, everyone associated with the club – is happy.
Since you have joined in the middle of the season, what changes would you like to make now, which will make Blasters a stronger team?
There are two things that every club wants. The first is success on the field. I know people talk about Kerala Blasters being the only Indian Super League (ISL) a club that has not lifted the trophy, but has been in three finals. For many fans that is not good enough, but there is a very thin margin. Today we can talk about one or three trophies. So, something must have been done right to get to that position. Now it’s all about seeing what final push we can to push ourselves over the line. The second part is about performing on the field. A lot of what we do on the field is a result of what we do behind the scenes. I must say that as a club, Kerala Blasters are very fortunate to have such a strong foundation. There are a number of interesting initiatives that we have undertaken that we will reveal, but our core vision is that we can be one of the clubs that promotes a lot of local talent.
For a club with a large fan base, promoting local talent, playing younger players, or developing players is not enough. In the end that’s what counts as a trophy. How long do you think it will take the club to end the drought?
I tell others that evil will come when you least expect it. I have personal experience of this (Super Cup with Odisha). I feel like when you’re so obsessed with winning trophies, you tend to overlook a lot of things and the basic things that you need to do to get there. I feel that obsession doesn’t have to be manic obsession. Because at the end of the day, if you want to win something, you have to take it one step at a time. It will happen. There are too many good people at the club who care too much to make sure that doesn’t happen. People say that now we are a club that exists only for (player) development, that we only sell players. That is a little far from the truth. If you evaluate the current squad, there are quite a few senior players in there. This is not an inexperienced squad. We have foreign players who have been around the block (in the ISL). Of course, no one said that (a) perfect (team) but Karolis (Skinkys, KBFC sports director) and his team work diligently behind the scenes to overcome (shortcomings). All it needs is a little tweak. I’m sure we’re not too far away from winning the cup with some small, smart tweaks.
You are not far from winning the cup?
I can give Odisha and their Super Cup victory as an example. If you look at that squad and compare it to a lot of other squads that we play and we compete against, you’re not going to like us at that point. Morale, collective effort, unity in the team made it happen. I feel that it is the team that matters, not the individual. If you have a collective spirit, it is quite strong. With a few positive additions, I don’t think I’m far off. There are many evils to fight against.
Now, the general opinion is that this year’s team is weaker than what you had last year, and the year KBFC entered the finals. Is that what you think too?
I won’t say. It’s subjective. When people talk about signings and about investing in Indian football, you have to find value in the market before you sign. Kerala Blasters is a special club. You need someone who can handle the expectations, you need someone who can handle the demands that the fans want, and rightly so, because they give their heart and soul. Hand signals to signal that it is not the way (forward). Sometimes you have to be a little patient for the right profile or the right player. There are good people working here. Karolis is on the job and knows exactly what this team needs. He has a good sense of what he wears. We will give him and the coaches whatever support they need. It’s not that we are a million miles away. It’s not that we have to change drastically. It’s about certain positions, certain additions, certain tweaks, and I have confidence that it will change most of what we see now.
Given
If there is a buyer on the market willing to pay premium dollars (the club will take it). We all know that no club makes money. I’m not saying we identify ourselves as a feeder club, but sometimes if you feel the right number… Then there are willing players as well. After the transfer fee, there is a demand for the player’s salary. So, if selling someone will give the club a lot of money, you have to take a decision.
Was the decision necessary because the club was losing money?
To dispel the myth, the money does not go into the owner’s pocket! The club is losing money every year. It hasn’t even broken down yet, and as Kerala Blasters, I am one of the clubs that is well positioned to do so in the next few years. This is not the first club I have worked for and I understand the challenges every owner faces. Every owner should be commended for putting money into the sport and supporting it, when it doesn’t exactly give the best return. Despite all the criticism, the owners of Kerala Blasters should be praised. He has not wavered in his determination to make this club a success.
From the fans’ point of view, if you get a record amount for player transfers, you have to pump it back into the team, which is not the case with KBFC this season. How do you explain the lack of quality replacements?
The answer is simple. I can count on my fingers six people who are in Indian football now, and I don’t think anyone is up for sale. Signings depend on the right profile. None of these clubs want to make investments. That’s because the option wasn’t available at that time. If you take a short-term short-sighted decision, it may hurt you in the long run. Investments will be made, but for the right players. You might please people (by paying more than the top) but it’s not good. I won’t say that clubs don’t make mistakes, but the goal is to find the right players and not pay for chances that could be signings, without having the same impact.
Did you see any reinforcements during the January window?
Of course, it would be lying if we didn’t. We know there are some things that need to be done.
