02

JEFE
TALK
Hello Bengaluru, organised and have the firepower to hurt us
if we show any sign of weakness.
Welcome to what is a big, big evening for all
of us at the Fortress. Everything that we
have done over the last few months comes No one can predict what will
down to this game and I hope I can get to unfold at the end of the game, but
say this again in a week from now.
what I do know is we will give this
Before I proceed, I would like to welcome everything.
the FC Pune City team and staff to
Bengaluru. We will be playing each other
for the fourth time this season and it’s While we back our strength, an important
always been an engrossing contest. I don’t part of it lies beyond the dressing room and
expect any less this time either. the touchline. It lies in every song you sing
for us, every roar you greet us with and all
the energy you bring for those 90 minutes
We played out a goalless draw in Balewadi
and beyond. We will need that strength once
on Wednesday and while we would have
again today.
liked bring with us an away goal, the result
was a fair reflection of battle that was No one can predict what will unfold at the
evenly fought. But football isn’t about what end of the game, but what I do know is we
could have been. On Sunday we got to know will give this everything. My team has never
that the Fortress will be the venue for the failed because of a lack of effort. That won’t
final of the Indian Super League and we change tonight.
couldn’t have a bigger motivation to get the
job done tonight. We missed out on a Love,
similar opportunity in the AFC Cup last
season and in a way, we have a chance to
make it right.

The fact that the only two draws we have

played out in the ISL have come against
Pune, should give you an indication about
the task we face tonight. The opposition are
 t’s a winner-takes-all clash at the
Fortress tonight as Roca’s Blues go
head-to-head against Popovic’s Stallions
in the second-leg of this semifinal tie.
With the first-leg ending goalless at the
Balewadi Stadium, the tie is still wide open for
either side to grab the spoils and become the
first team to seal their place in the grand final.
Coming into the game, Bengaluru have been
held to draws only twice this season in the
ISL, incidentally on both occasions by Pune,
and the stalemate on Wednesday was their
first in the ISL. However, there’s still all to
play for at the Fortress, despite the Blues not
getting that elusive away goal.
For Bengaluru, the equation is simple - they
need a win tonight to go through to the final.
Pune, on the other hand, need a win, or can go
through on away goals, if the game ends in a
scoring draw in normal time. If the game ends
goalless, it will be extra time (where away
goals won’t count) and then the penalty
shootout if the sides still can’t be separated.
Keeping that in mind, the Blues need to be
extra cautious to avoid giving away any early
advantage to the Stallions who generally
prefer a compact game. Nonetheless,
Bengaluru will be back in familiar surrounds,
and will hope to make most of the home
advantage in this must-win clash.
04 BEN SQUAD
Head Coach Assistant Coach
Albert Roca Marc Huguet

GOALKEEPERS
1 Gurpreet Singh Sandhu
28 Lathuammawia Ralte
23 Abhra Mondal
DEFENDERS
2 Rahul Bheke
3 Collin Abranches
4 Zohmingliana Ralte
5 Juan Gonzalez
6 John Johnson
15 Subhasish Bose
22 Nishu Kumar
MIDFIELDERS
8 Lenny Rodrigues
10 Harmanjot Khabra
14 Dimas Delgado
16 Erik Paartalu
17 Boithang Haokip
19 Antonio Dovale
20 Alwyn George
30 Malsawmzuala
44 Victor Perez
FORWARDS
7 Miku
11 Sunil Chhetri
12 Daniel Segovia
18 Thongkhosiem Haokip
21 Udanta Singh
25 Daniel Lalhlimpuia
 PUN SQUAD
Head Coach
Ranko Popovic

GOALKEEPERS
Kamaljit Singh 1
Vishal Kaith 13
Anuj Kumar 24
DEFENDERS
Harpreet Singh 2
Gurtej Singh 3
Rafael Lopez 4
Sarthak Golui 16
Manuel Jesus 21
Lalchhuanmawia Fanai 31
Sahil Panwar 36
MIDFIELDERS
Adil Khan 5
Marcos Tebar 6
Jonatan Lucca 7
Marko Stankovic 15
Rohit Kumar 17
Jewel Raja 23
Isaac Vanmalsawma 35
FORWARDS
Emiliano Alfaro 9
Marcelo Pereira 10
Ajay Singh 11
Baljit Sahni 12
Kean Lewis 19
Diego Carlos 20
Ashique Kuruniyan 22
Gani Ahmed Nigam 34
08
 COVER STORY
“YOU DON’T
PUT STICKERS
ON A FERRARI”
ohn Johnson’s had his collar
pulled twice in a BFC shirt. The
first time in a bizarre celebration,
marking the arrival of a hero when
he rose to nod home against Rangdajied
United. The second, in restraint, giving
the stands a gladiator when Ashley
Westwood had to hold him back from
re-entering the pitch with a displaced jaw
in a game against Salgaocar. In a
redundant detail that we’ll give you
anyway, he won the header in that
challenge before going home for
Christmas with a not-so-pretty face. It
wouldn’t affect the mirth. It never does.
Johnson is one of the only two players
that remain in Bengaluru FC from the
first ever Bengaluru FC squad, the other
being captain and good friend, Sunil
Chhetri. So much has changed and yet,
for Johnson, everything’s the same.
Being an English defender brings with it
a degree of no-fuss and it’s this attribute
that often short changes what Johno – as
he’s called by all and sundry – actually
goes about doing. Football folklore drools
over thirty-yarders and defences being
reduced to drunkards with wobbly knees
by strikers who are devoid of the concept
of mercy. This is why you won’t often
hear about the time the No. 6 split his
forehead in the AFC Champions League
qualifier against JDT at the Larkin
Stadium, ran to the touchline, got himself
stitched and came back onto the pitch.
His first action on re-joining the game? A
thumping header.
Every League or Cup medal he possesses
has a little certificate from the medical
team at the club to go with it. There’s the
disfigured jaw from 2013, the stitched up
forehead from 2014, the year of the twice
broken nose in 2015 and the cracked rib
from 2017 that just wouldn’t heal. But
nothing big enough to keep him out.
He’s a massive presence on the pitch
giving Bengaluru the luxury of two
‘captains’ on either end of the field and
they couldn’t be more similar. Chhetri
walks away after scoring, Johno,
meanwhile, offers a strange half-jump on
the nearest teammates’ shoulder before
scampering back to his position. They
both love the idea of a goal, they’re just
unsure about how to show their joy. “I
guess it comes from realising that the job
isn’t done as yet. Football can break your
heart when you’re never ready for it.”
Coming through the ranks at the
Middlesbrough academy, Johno’s got
enough stories for a tattoo to narrate,
and the idea of ink seems to blend
perfectly with his battered-yet-not-out
boxer-like get-up. That’s when he goes
“You don’t put stickers on a Ferrari” with
the kind of nonchalance that only he can
pull off. Speaking about boxers, his
dislike for staying down after a hit is
something that his teammates will
profess. He even takes it a step ahead,
walking over to yank them up during a
game if he feels they’ve gone down easy.
“If you’re hurt, you’re hurt. But for me,
staying down is more of a pride thing. I
would never want to give someone the
impression that I’m weaker than him or
that I’ve been outmuscled. If I’m hit and
hurting, you’re never going to know.”
But even for someone with an
exceptional threshold to deal with pain,
Johno admits to living with a blow he
knows he won’t ever recover from. “That
Mohun Bagan equaliser at home. It’s my
most painful memory in a BFC shirt. One
that I will never be able to get over and
it’s one that eats into some of my sleep
on a few days. We scored first and were
minutes away from a title we thought we
deserved. To then see it grabbed from
your hands is sickening. It’s one of those
rare moments when I’m not proud of a
scar,” he says. Incidentally, it was Johno
who got his head to the ball that flew
past Debjit Majumder to send the stands
into a fever pitch. He even called it in the
pre-game press conference on
match-eve when asked why he hadn’t
scored all season. “I’m saving it for
tomorrow,” was his answer with a
wide smile.
Albert Roca may have brought along with
him the manual and the moccasins to
mastering the sardana on the pitch. But
neither time nor design has tempted
John Johnson from straying away from
the beauty that lies in the
unpleasantness of a mosh pit at a rock
show. It’s the only way he knows.
 MIKU MARCELINHO
TOP SCORER MOST SHOTS
3 GOALS 9 SHOTS
14
MEN IN FORM BEN
GURPREET SINGH SANDHU
The Blues’ custodian has had an impressive run of games,
keeping three clean sheets on the trot as he made his way
up the Indian Super League golden glove charts. His
towering presence in the box makes it near impossible for
the opposition to get a header away - and with 40 saves to
his name, the Blues will need him to be at his best to avoid
Pune from scoring an away goal.

DIMAS DELGADO
Voted February’s Fan Player of the Month, Dimas Delgado
played a vital part in the first leg of the Blues’ semifinal
against FC Pune City at the Balewadi. With a penchant for
long-range passes and the ability to dictate tempo from his
position, Dimas could be crucial in the heart of midfield for
the Blues tonight.

UDANTA SINGH
Handed a place on the bench for the last two games, Udanta Singh
came on and added impetus to the Blues’ attack, scoring in injury time
against Kerala Blasters and creating a host of chances in the first leg
of the semifinal against FC Pune City at the Balewadi on Wednesday.
His pace down the flank could prove to be the difference for Roca’s
men tonight.
MEN IN FORM PUN
MARKO STANKOVIC
The Austrian put in a Hero of the Match performance for
Popovic’s men on Wednesday and is once again expected to
marshal the visitors’ midfield tonight. In the first leg, Stankovic
completed a total of 70 passes at an accuracy of 83% while
creating three chances for his side. The former Austria Wien
man will be one, the Blues need to keep quiet tonight.

VISHAL KAITH
The Pune custodian played a major role for the Stallions
as they kept a clean sheet against a Miku and Chhetri-led
Bengaluru attack in the first leg. Kaith, who like Gurpreet, has
kept seven clean sheets so far, made 2 saves and 7 clearances at
the Balewadi Stadium, including the on which denied the Blues’
skipper from a freekick in the first half. He will be Pune’s last line of
defense tonight, one which Bengaluru will hope to break.

RAFA LOPEZ
The only foreign defender in Pune’s line-up in the first leg, Lopez
is expected to lead the backline once again tonight. The Spaniard
was rock-solid denying space to Miku and made a total of eight
clearances, second only to Johnson’s nine on the night. He will
be tasked with marking Miku and it will be an interesting battle
tonight between the former Getafe teammates.
 BFC v TEAMS FROM PUNE

Eugeneson Lyngdoh I 78’

BFC v Kalyani Bharat FC (2014-15)

If you ask fans about Indian midfielders at BFC,

Eugeneson’s name will be right on top of the pile. It’s
said that Chhetri had to turn a salesman to convince
him about the move to BFC. But aren’t we glad he did!
This goal was a classic. A marauding CK Vineeth
forced the defender to make a hurried clearance right
into Eugene’s path. He looked right, then left, then
decided he would do it himself and let loose a thunder-
ous shot from well outside the box. Arindam, who would
later play for us, was in goal and had no answer to that.
Eugene had created history as that was our first ever
victory at the Sree Kanteerava stadium.
Fun fact: It came against a team called KBFC.

Sunil Chhetri I 20’

BFC v DSK Shivajians (2016-17)

Can we ever put up any list at this club without his

name on it? This was a night we will never forget. It
was Albert Roca’s first I-League season and we
were all anxious about the new system in place. 19
minutes into the game, Nishu Kumar intercepted a
ball and passed it to Chhetri who then passed it to
Len Doungel, and paced forward to receive the
latter’s back heel. By the time the quick move
ended, Soiram Porei was picking the ball out of the
net. That was the first of seven goals we would
score that night, a record for us. The skipper scored
two of them. He often gets a lot of good-natured
banter from the fans about not scoring a hat-trick.
18
FIRST TOUCH!
We Sat Down With Our Big Aussie Midfielder And Took Him On A Trip
Down Memory Lane To Recall The Many Firsts In His Career…
Boots
My first boots were a pair of stingrays. They
were cheap ones that I think my dad got for
me. They were made of black leather and had
a dash of blue on them.
Goal
I don’t remember my first goal but the first
one worth remembering was a long-ranger
that I scored when I was seven. It was raining
hard and I have a vivid memory of the ball
fizzing through the rain as I hit it. We won 2-1.
Red card
Don’t jinx me. I haven’t had one in my career
so far. Touchwood!
Broken Bone
My first broken bone came with BFC! I broke a
rib about a week before the season started
and I played through the pain for the first four
weeks of the season.
First professional contract
I signed my first professional contract when I
was 17, finishing my last year of high school
with Northern Spirit in the National Soccer
League, which is now the A-League. I spent
most of the $5000 I made that season on the
petrol for the two hour journey to get to
training and back every day.
First trip abroad
I went to Los Angeles with my brother and
parents when I was eight years old. We visited
Disneyland and it was an amazing experience!
First car
I bought my first car in Scotland. After we got
promoted, I got a bonus and I spent every cent
of that on a Vauxhall Astra. Funny thing was
that it was a manual, and I never learned how
to drive one. So driving out of the dealership I
was burning my clutch and burning the gears!
First sponsor
My first paid sponsorship deal was with
PUMA, when I signed with them at the age of
24. It’s funny because even today, I wear
PUMA and so does BFC!
International cap
I played for the Australia U16s and U17s. In
2003 I played at the Youth World Cup in
Finland; those were my first appearances for
Australia.
First autograph
The first time I was asked for an autograph, it
was from a random guy and his son at a local
park. They had watched me train by myself
when I was about 15 and he didn’t know who I
was. But he just said that they had been
watching me for an hour or so and wondered
if he could get my autograph. It was a nice
moment because it reminded me that
someone is always watching and that I have a
responsibility to always give my best and hope
to inspire at least one more person.
First roommate
My first roommate at a club was the
goalkeeper Michael Theo at Brisbane Roar.
We had an incredible chemistry and we were
so successful on the pitch that we never
changed anything in our routines. We even got
as far as making him open the door first and
other superstitions. It’s quite funny
looking back!