Kerala Blasters FC head coach Ivan Vukomanovic is into his third season in the Indian Super League (ISL) and he has naturally overseen the rise of multiple young players who have thrived under his watch and gone on to represent the national team.
Vukomanovic believes that the progress that a player makes from the club level to play for his country is a validation of the efforts and performances that he has delivered for the former. The tactician understands that working regularly on skill sets for the club is a part of the daily routine of any professional. However, the national setup gives a stamp of authority to the same from a time to time basis, and that is a great driving factor for several promising stars.
“National team call-up is a validation of your performances for the club”
The current Kerala Blasters FC squad has players such as Pritam Kotal, Ishan Pandita, Jeakson Singh, and Rahul KP who are or have been a part of the senior national Indian side in the recent past. Similarly, they have individuals like Hormipan Ruivah, Vibin Mohanan, and Mohammed Aimen who represent the India U-23 team. Vukomanovic states that he gets immense satisfaction when his players owe the success that they achieve at the international stage to the work that they put in on the training turf for the Yellow Army.
“From one side, with difficulties, because they are recognising that these moments are not easy both from a physical and mental side, because you are playing for a club that is demanding from an expectations perspective. From the other side, I am really glad to see how they have developed because they become better by understanding a lot from technical and tactical sides, which is why they get national team call-ups, and for them it’s further development. Your training process in a club is a daily process, but the national team is a confirmation of your efforts!” Vukomanovic says.
He adds, “I am happy for them, because you see them improving, smiling, and being happy. The thing I like the most with young players is when they tell us that the things we do in training makes their life easier, and I am glad that they recognize the same, which is equally important for their development. As a teacher, you are always proud of seeing your players become important parts of the society, I get the same feeling as a coach.”
“RFDL helps give game-time to a lot of my squad players”
The third season of the Reliance Foundation Development League (RFDL) is currently on and Vukomanovic spent considerable time reflecting on the benefits that the elite youth level tournament, bringing clubs from across Indian football onboard, plays in shaping careers of young professionals. He says that it is the perfect platform for players lacking adequate game-time at the senior level to perform at.
In fact, Vukomanovic appreciated the fact that it allows clubs to capitalise optimally on their total squad strength. For instance, if a team hosts multiple players for any key position, Vukomanovic explains that they deploy a few of those players to earn their stripes in the RFDL.
“We send players on a weekly basis, especially if we have multiple players for a position. They practice for us, and then they go to the B team and they play a few games there. You give them consistency to play, how they play doesn’t matter, but you need that playing time. They suffer whilst entering higher intensity training sessions, but when they play with that intensity with youngsters, they make a difference,” Vukomanovic says.
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