Kerala Blasters coach praises Bengaluru FC but adds: ‘We won't be lying down to them’

Kerala Blasters head coach Ashley Westwood lavished praise on Bengaluru FC ahead of their ISL meeting on Saturday. But the Englishman has declared that his side, yet to win a match this season, won’t be a pushover.

“We won't be lying down to Bangalore, that's for sure,” Ashley Westwood said in his pre-match press conference on Thursday.

Westwood began his job as interim boss at the Blasters with a 0-2 away defeat to Sports Club Delhi last Sunday. The Blasters had parted ways with head coach David Catala after the Spaniard managed just a point from the first six matches of the campaign.

Westwood has maintained that his side performed significantly better in the second half in Delhi and deserved at least a draw. He even mocked the Delhi coaching staff for their exuberant celebrations after the match. “For me, you always look at the opposition coach, and when you're running around the pitch like you won the World Cup, is because you got away with a win that you didn't deserve,” Westwood said.

Unlike Delhi, whose win over the Blasters was their first of the season, Bengaluru are much better placed. They have won four and drawn twice in seven rounds, and share the second place with Mohun Bagan Super Giant and Jamshedpur on 14 points, while Mumbai City lead the pack on 17 points.

“Bengaluru are a tough side, very well organised. They're dangerous in attack, so we need to make sure we defend correctly,” Westwood said.

However, the Blasters' boss made sure not to pay too much respect to their opponents. Bengaluru recently appointed Spaniard Pep Munoz as head coach, replacing Renedy Singh, who was in charge from the start of the season. Westwood believes not everything is smooth at Bengaluru because they too changed the coach.

“Things can't be completely right for them, otherwise they wouldn't have changed their manager. So there's something not quite 100% right with them; otherwise, they wouldn't have done that.

“But we are not really bothered about them. We know what they are, we know what they bring. We're trying to concentrate on ourselves and improve from the last performance,” Westwood said.

The Englishman would have a special reunion when he returns to the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on the weekend. Westwood was the first coach of Bengaluru when they played in the erstwhile first division, the I-League. Westwood turned newcomers Bengaluru into the champions of the I-League, and won the title again after a season’s break.