I-League 2017-18: Aizawl FC Begin Title Defence Against East Bengal

Paulo Meneses, a 39-year-old football coach from Portugal, arrived in Aizawl in July. His task—to mount a credible title defence with the first club from the Northeast to ever win the national title. That challenge begins on November 28, with Aizawl FC’s first I-League match of the 2017-18 season, away from home against Kolkata giants East Bengal. 

Meneses and his assistant, Izan Andres, sat down with Newsclick.in to discuss at length the possibilities and difficulties presented by football in the Northeast. Meneses brings with him considerable experience—having played and coached the game in the lower leagues in Europe as well as Panama and Laos. At Aizawl, he will look to put some of the ideas he has developed into practice. Meneses has, essentially, been playing with two teams. The first, consisting largely of academy players and some seniors, is challenging for the ongoing Mizoram Premier League. The second is the one he is has been preparing for the I-League where the playing style is very different and the competitiveness at a different level. 

What Meneses has, for sure, is the support of a devout footballing public. Home games for Aizawl FC will be sold out affairs and the three northeast derbies (with Imphal’s Neroca FC and Shillong Lajong) will be among the most passionately followed games on the Indian football calendar. Meneses and Andres are looking forward to these occasions, as well as the opportunity to represent the country in the AFC Champions League.  

Aizawl FC did things their own way last season. With Khalid Jamie at the helm, they built a squad that refused to be overawed by the competition. This season, though, is very different. “The People’s Club” go into the league as champions—with a target on their backs. The I-League title did not bring with it any substantial riches either. So, in order to survive in the long term, Aizawl have to not only remain competitive but also develop aspects such as scouting programmes and a marketing department. The idea of taking a football club from the Northeast and making it a national entity is not one many have converted into reality. Even Lajong—with a strong foundation and plenty of support—have struggled to find the money to stay in the game year after year. As Aizawl embarks on the next leg of that process, their coach breaks down the scale of the project and what he thinks needs to be done. The challenge is enormous. But as Meneses says, he’s looking forward to it.