Peter Taylor (in pic) had the good fortune of managing the England team in only one match. However, the coach, who gave the captain’s armband to the flamboyant David Beckham for the first time, is not short of experience, having managed various clubs since 1986, the English Under-21 and Under-20 teams and the Bahrain national team in 2011-12.
Kerala Blasters signed Taylor, 63, as the head coach in May this year, and the Englishman, a tough taskmaster, has earned the respect of his players. He is a man with a vision, and his mission this year is to help Kerala Blasters do one better than what they did in the inaugural year when the team finished runners-up to Atletico de Kolkata.
“I am told that the side has a huge fan base and therefore they cannot be disappointed. However, it is not going to be easy as the team could mange only 13 goals in all last year. My aim — taking these factors into consideration — would be to help the team play with more pace in the attack so that we score more this season,” said Taylor.
“I am going to take one match at a time. So strategies will depend on the opponent at hand and so would the team’s line-up. Anyway, it is still too early to talk about strategies; the focus now is on helping the players gain match fitness.
“The good thing about the ISL is that it insists on having five Indian players all the time on the pitch. I wish they followed the same rules back home in England, as this is surely going to help Indian football in the long-term, with the League helping the Federation to get more and more players for the Indian team.
“With the matches all being played in India, I think what we have done by sticking together in Thiruvananthapuram, instead of going abroad for training, is right. The players should be used to the heat in the country and this I think would stand the team in good stead,” Taylor signed off.
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