Kerala Blasters appoint Westwood, a coach who knows Indian football from pre-ISL days
Englishman Ashley Westwood has replaced David Catala, who was sacked as head coach of ISL side Kerala Blasters.
Englishman Ashley Westwood has replaced David Catala, who was sacked as head coach of ISL side Kerala Blasters.
Englishman Ashley Westwood has replaced David Catala, who was sacked as head coach of ISL side Kerala Blasters.
Kerala Blasters FC appointed English manager Ashley Westwood in an interim capacity after parting ways with head coach David Catala following a poor start to the Indian Super League (ISL) season.
"Kerala Blasters FC have appointed Ashley Westwood as the club's Head Coach until the end of the ongoing season," the club said in a statement.
Westwood takes over a club reeling in the 13th position with just a point from six rounds. Under Catala, the Blasters lost five times this season, with the last one a 1-3 defeat to Punjab FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi on Saturday.
Westwood becomes the fifth Englishman to manage the Blasters after David James (two terms), Peter Taylor, Steve Coppell and Trevor Morgan (caretaker).
"I'm looking forward to working with the squad and staff and understanding the group in the coming days. My focus is on settling in and getting to work with the players," Westwood said following his appointment.
Spaniard Catala had not managed in the country before taking over the reins from Mikael Stahre, who himself was sacked midway through a season. However, 49-year-old Westwood comes with plenty of experience managing in India.
His connection to Indian football dates back to pre-ISL days, when he announced himself by turning newcomers Bengaluru FC into the champions of I-League, the erstwhile first division in the country. He won again with Bengaluru after a season’s break before leaving to coach FA Penang in Malaysia.
Westwood had brief spells at ISL side ATK, first in the capacity of technical director and then as a caretaker, and later with Punjab FC. His most daring managerial stints came in international football, starting with the Afghanistan national team.
Westwood managed Afghanistan for a brief period, but it involved a famous win over India in a World Cup qualifier at Guwahati in March 2024.
In his most recent job, Westwood managed the Hong Kong national side. Under the Englishman, Hong Kong posted some decent results that reflected in their rankings. One of his memorable wins with Hong Kong again came against India (1-0) in an AFC Asian Cup qualifier last June.