I-League Winning Coach Kibu Vicuna Points Out Major Difference Between Indian And European Leagues

Currently, the manager of Polish I Liga side LKS Lodz, Kibu Vicuna pointed out the major difference in Indian football from other European Leagues.

Written by: India.com Sports Desk

Published: July 5, 2021, 10:02 PM IST

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Kibu Vicuna (Instagram: kibu_vicuna)

By Debayan Bhattacharyya

New Delhi: I-League winner coach Kibu Vicuna reckons that Indian football is growing and improving every day but in order to compete with the rest of the world, India needs to train and play more than what they have been doing recently. While speaking exclusively with India.com, I-League winning Mohun Bagan coach and also a former Kerala Blasters coach in the Indian Super League said that Indian football is going through a transition and with every passing year it keeps getting better. Talking about his experience in India, the former Wisla Plock manager mentioned  India as “we”, revealing how much he loves Indian football and wants to be associated with it in some form in the near future.

“I think Indian football is growing up and it’s improving every year. I think in India we should…I said “we”, as I would like to see Indian football get better and better.”

Currently the manager of Polish I Liga side LKS Lodz, he points out the major difference in Indian football from other European Leagues.

“For example, here in Poland, the teams are training, 10-11 months a year. In India, we’ve played for like 5-6 months compared to 12 months here. So, it’s very difficult to improve, as you’re playing half a year, so you need to continue playing more matches.”

“In Spain, they are playing 60 games a season. In India, you are playing 20-22 games and if you’re part of the national team, you’ll play around 25, maximum 30 games, so it’s half. This experience is very important that is to play games, to continue improving and to train and this is the main area where Indian football has to improve.”

Vicuna took over the reigns in the 2019-20 I-League season as the gaffer of Mohun Bagan and after a shaky start in the league, the Mariners went onto clinch their 5th I-League crown, which is the joint-highest with Dempo SC. Last season, he had a stint in the Indian Super League with Kerala Blasters. He didn’t have the best of seasons as his side finished 10th in the league, out of a total of 11 teams.

While signing off he gave his regards to all the Indian football fans and expressed his desire to come back to India once again.