Ashley Westwood's impact on Bengaluru FC

Ashley Westwood’s impact at Bengaluru FC has been remarkable. The incredible support for the club that he has managed to generate an electric atmosphere every time a match was played at the Kanteerva, popularly known as “the fortress” is breathtaking for any supporter lucky enough to watch from the seats.

Westwood’s love for the club, paired with his innate ability to connect with both the players and fans, have transformed Westwood into somewhat of a cult figure.

With big boots to fill, the experienced Spaniard Albert Roca arrives with his own brand of coaching and strategy that he plans to implement on the club.

The question on everbody’s mind is — whether he’ll be able to make a mark on his fans, and keep the atmosphere in the stadium as emphatic as it was under Ashley? Westwood’s legacy is unforgettable, best represented in the two league titles and Federation Cup that he led the club to in his relatively short tenure of three years.

Roca however, has a CV that makes for good reading, being the former assistant manager of FC Barcelona and Galatasaray, as well as managing the El Salvador national team for a year.

Despite this, he will have to use all his experience and expertise in order to step into Westwood’s shoes and successfully replicate the former gaffer’s supreme and sometimes miraculous achievements.

Various dedicated supporters who regularly turn out to the Kanteerva Stadium’s west block stand, known as The “West Block Blues,” share their views on their favourite manager!

Leader of the fan group Wasim Ahmed, says, “The success the club has achieved in this short amount of time is ridiculous. Nobody expected them to finish top in their first season. BFC has the true pride of Bengaluru.”

Fellow supporter Harsha G Rao, 26, agrees, “The style of play under Ashley was more technical and English, which worked for our team.”

When asked about Westwood’s departure and Roca’s arrival, Wasim stated, “Westwood has been brilliant, we can’t thank him enough. Roca is coming with a strong CV. It shouldn’t be a problem as the BFC management has always been smart with decisions.”

Software engineer Anirudh Ravishankar rued Westwood’s departure, but approves, saying: “Roca has been a gem of a pick. The announcement was a very good surprise. He comes with a lot of experience having worked under Rijkaard and for FC Barcelona. We need to give him full-fledged support.”

All in all, there was a great sense of optimism, “We have the strongest youth academy in the league this season and we have a very high contingent of good Indian players.”

Harsha also shares the same view, saying, “It will be an exciting season ahead and I am looking forward to it”.

Though an overriding melancholy persists still within the heart’s of all of Bengaluru FC’s faithful following Westwood’s departure. There are also notions of newfound optimism and excitement regarding the appointment of the stellar Spaniard Albert Roca.

Now, that the turfs have changed, only time will tell.