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When Kibu Vicuna arrived in India and took charge of Mohun Bagan, there was huge pressure as the fans were demanding the prestigious I-League title, having missed out on the top prize for four consecutive seasons. After a scoreless draw against Aizawl FC in the season opener, the Mariners lost 2-4 to Churchill Brothers in front of their own fans. Questions were raised in the media and amongst the supporter forums about the suitability of their new head coach.
But, the Spanish maestro turned it around soon enough and won the league with four matches to spare as his team boasted a 16-point lead over city rivals East Bengal and a 17-point lead over Real Kashmir who have a game in hand. Since that horrific loss against Churchill, Vicuna's men went unbeaten for 14 matches, winning 12 of them. His team scored 33 goals and conceded only nine at the wrong end during that period of dominance.
The emphatic victory silenced the 48-year old's critics but with ATK's merger with Mohun Bagan ahead of the new season, things are about to change. The newly-crowned Indian Super League champions will be looking to keep their title-winning manager Antonio Lopez Habas on board for this new chapter of their club's history.
Now, Vicuna is available on the market and there would be a lot of suitors lining up for the former Osasuna assistant manager.
Let's take a look at three clubs that could benefit from hiring the Spanish maestro and turning their fortunes around in the next season of the ISL.
#1 NorthEast United
Eelco Schattorie achieved something big in the 2018-19 season as he helped the Highlanders qualify for the play-off stages for the first time. With Kerala Blasters poaching Schattorie at the start of the season, Robert Jarni came in and tried to usher in a new era with star signings like Asamoah Gyan.
The former Ghana captain got injured in November and Jarni helplessly witnessed the club's season derail in front of his eyes. The club management gave him a long time but after delivering two wins in 15 league matches, he was relieved of his duties as the club's head coach.
With Vicuna's tactical acumen, the Guwahati-based club would be in safe hands and probably not too dependent on a single player. The fans in Guwahati would love to see the free-flowing football style of Vicuna being played at NorthEast after witnessing just 16 goals in 18 league matches, the lowest in the 2019-20 season of ISL.
#2 Hyderabad FC
Pune City FC was rechristened as a new club in a new city but their fortunes didn't change as the new league entrant finished the recently-concluded winning only two of their 18 matches.
Phil Brown was sacked just after two-thirds of the league stage as he was able to bag only one win in 12 matches, getting only five points in that period. The former Hull City manager became the first head coach in the ISL to not keep a clean sheet despite being in charge for a total of 20 league matches.
Appointing Vicuna would fix the leaky defence that had been the club's Achilles heel all season, as the 48-year old's shrewd tactics at the back helped Mohun Bagan shore up their backline. Moreover, the Spanish manager would also get the best out of attacking players like Marcelinho and Bobo and might be pivotal in grooming young Indian talents like Abhishek Halder, Sahil Panwar, and Asish Rai.
#3 Kerala Blasters
There are rumours going around in the media that Kerala Blasters have hired Kibu Vicuna but nothing is confirmed in football till someone puts pen to paper. If Vicuna comes to the Kerala-based club, he would need to bring his sheer ruthlessness along with him.
After unsuccessful Calcutta Football League and Durand Cup campaigns, the 48-year old was quick to realise what's wrong and acted soon to fix that at Mohun Bagan. Salva Chammoro was down on confidence according to the former Bagan head coach and he was released from his contract. This allowed Baba Diawara to come in and score a crucial 10 league goals, including the goal that sealed the I-League title.
In six seasons, Blasters have signed and fired eight managers, including top names like Rene Muelensteen, Steve Coppell, Peter Taylor, and Eelco Schattorie. The top brass of the club will have to identify a top managerial target they believe in and stick with him during the tough times as the Mohun Bagan club management did with Vicuna at the starting of the 2019-20 season. The club needs a transition and Vicuna would be the right man to do it but he would require some time to turn things around.
