How Westwood has made it difficult for India

Margao: A run that began with a rarefied aside win in nov 2023 has since chewed up ii head coaches and now feels like climbing Mt Everest without oxygen support. Three matches India were expected to win and did not have played an outsized role in the unravelling of a qualification cycle that started with Manvir Singh’s winner in Kuwait in November 2023. All have one person in common: Ashley Westwood.

As Afghanistan head coach, Westwood, 49, absorbed a players’ rebellion and lived through a logistical nightmare of organising nearly 350 flight tickets from 16-17 countries to assemble a team ready for back-to-back matches against India. This was when India were second in the group from where the top two would make it to the final 18 to choose Asia’s teams in the 2026 World Cup. Being in the third round of the World Cup qualifiers would also ensure a finals berth in the 2027 Asian Cup.

That didn’t happen largely because the blip of a 0-0 away draw with Afghanistan became a bump when Westwood’s men came back to win 2-1 in Guwahati. It was the first time Afghanistan had beaten India in India. At 117, India were ranked 41 places above Afghanistan. “I never felt we were in trouble…I thought we got what we deserved,” said the Englishman.

It was this combination of chutzpah and composure that had made Westwood a name in India. A Manchester United academy right-back who told Alex Ferguson that he wanted out to seek more game time – big mistake, he has since acknowledged – Westwood set Bengaluru FC on their way with two I-League titles and a Federation Cup in the first three years of the club.

And he wasn’t the first choice. Richard Money, then with Cambridge United, was, said Mandar Tamhane, the former CEO of Bengaluru FC who now holds that position at NorthEast United FC. “We were all set to present Richard as coach when he said he couldn’t travel for personal reasons,” Tamhane told HT over the phone from Pune on Monday.

Through a contact at a company dealing in player management and merger and acquisition in football, Tamhane came to know of Westwood. “I knew someone at Blackburn Rovers where Ashley was assistant coach. I was told he is the first to arrive and last to leave training. That he is very driven.”

Bengaluru FC is the only job Westwood has held for more than one year. “He helped us understand the importance of players eating together, investing in GPS vests and starting an incentive scheme for the players. These were uncommon in India in 2013 (when BFC were set up).” From diet to maintenance of the training ground, Westwood, Tamhane said, was involved.

Since leaving Bengaluru FC, Westwood has moved to Malaysia, returned to India at ATK and Punjab FC, took up the job with Afghanistan before joining Hong Kong last year. Before Stephen Constantine got the job in 2015, Westwood was also in contention to be named India head coach. Last June, Hong Kong rode a late penalty to win 1-0 against India. Then, at a packed Bangabandhu Stadium in Dhaka on October 9, Hong Kong beat Bangladesh 4-3 to go top of group C with seven points.

It is why Singapore head coach Gavin Lee said on Monday, “How we end this window depends on what happens in the other game.” Hong Kong play Bangladesh earlier on Tuesday.

In eight matches since the victory against Kuwait, India have slipped out of the World Cup qualification and, being third in group C, are in real danger of not making it to the Asian Cup. In that time, Igor Stimac was sacked and Manolo Marquez stepped down. More than one point from matches against teams managed by Westwood, India’s kryptonite, and things could have been very different.

---

---