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With just one win and a solitary draw from their first six matches of ISL 2017, things are not looking good for the NorthEast United FC camp, especially for head coach Joao Carlos De Deus. The Highlanders’ abysmal form this season has prompted the club management to take a closer look at things, with their Portuguese coach’s job coming under scrutiny.
The Highlanders are currently on a three-match losing streak, which has plummeted them to the ninth spot on the ISL table, just one spot above bottom club Delhi Dynamos. Their only victory so far this season has come against the Delhi outfit, earlier this month.
“The management is not exactly happy with the team and the coach’s performance,” a club official said to Sportskeeda. “They have met all the players and the coaches, and are trying to figure out what went wrong.”
Interestingly, NEUFC’s former head coach Nelo Vingada is one of the names in consideration for taking over from De Deus, should the club take the decision to part ways with the latter.
“As of now, there is nothing concrete. However, some of our ex-coaches like Nelo Vingada has contacted the management, mentioning their availability,” said the official.
Vingada is one of the coaches who enjoys a lot of popularity among the NorthEast fans, as he had guided them to their highest finish in the tournament’s history last year, when they finished fifth, missing out on semifinal qualification by just two points.
After his stint with NEUFC last season, Vingada had taken up the high-profile job of Malaysia national team head coach in May. However, the Portuguese coach’s appointment did not really help Malaysia’s fortunes. The Tigers could only manage one draw and six losses from their seven matches under the 64-year-old.
Subsequently, Vingada stepped down from his role as the Malaysia head coach on December 6.
However, an immediate sacking does not seem to be on the cards. De Deus has conducted training with the squad on Tuesday morning and is set to travel to Pune with the team on Wednesday. There will not be any change in coaches at the club till their match against FC Pune City on Saturday, the NEUFC official confirmed.
