Bangkok United head coach Mano Pölking believes harsh lessons learned from a disappointing 2019 can inspire his side to the 2020 Thai League title.
Since joining the club in 2014, the Brazilian has overseen the Bangkok Angels’ rise from relegation strugglers to five consecutive Top Five finishes. But an inability to take the final step and become champions has caused frustration, particularly last year.
With great investment came great expectations, but, despite the faltering form of their main rivals, Bangkok United ended the season in fourth spot – their worst finish since 2015.
“Last year much of the pressure came from the investments we made at the beginning of the season,” said Pölking. “After finishing in the Top Three three times, it was clear we were missing something and I told the boss that one day we would have to loosen the purse strings.
“This was supposed to be the final step and what happened? We spent almost 100 million Baht and ended up with the worst season compared to the ones in which we had already established ourselves as a big club.”
The signings of El Salvador striker Nelson Bonilla, Thailand international wing-backs Tristan Do and Peerapat Notchaiya and rising star Anon Amornlerdsak had generated significant optimism at the beginning of 2019. The club adopted the slogan ‘The Time Is Now’ to hammer home the message that it seemed to be now or never, with Buriram United weakened by the loss of striker Diogo Luis Santo.
Unfortunately, three of the four new boys spent a significant part of the season injured, while playmaker Vander Luiz and defender Mika Chunuonsee also suffered serious injury problems. Add to that an eight-match suspension for midfielder Sanrawat Dechmitr and Bangkok United were rarely, if ever, at full strength.
“The pressure was there from the beginning as if we had to win the title last year,” Pölking added. “It was a very unlucky year and this is not meant as an excuse. We have a good squad. A big club cannot say we lost because our players were injured. But at the same time, in crucial games at crucial moments, we were often short of key players, especially the players that we bought.
“Nelson Bonilla, Tristan Do and Peerapat Notchaiya represented 70 per cent of the investment needed to make the final step. I didn’t have them for almost half of the season. But we should still be doing better than that.”
Nevertheless, Pölking returns for the 2020 campaign with the belief that his side can still become champions, though the club have exercised more caution with this year’s slogan. ‘Let’s Make It True’ is a nod to the True Corporation – the media giant that sponsors the club.
“As a big club, we always have to have this target (to be champions),” said Pölking. “We are now one of the big clubs, one of the clubs with the best conditions and good payment. We started growing very fast together and reached a level when we finished second, we finished third, and then we finished second again. Then the pressure comes to improve on that.
“We need to take the pressure off the players and get to work as a team and forget about the other teams. I really believe we can do it.”
Pölking recognises that he could well have been dismissed for failing to win silverware in 2019, but he is grateful to have another chance to lift an elusive trophy. With just one player brought in, he believes the greatest asset may be continuity, and he is confident that the one big signing – Japanese midfielder Hajime Hosogai – can have a very positive influence.
“In a normal situation, I should be gone,” Pölking admitted.
“The club decided to give me one more chance and I was very pleased to hear that. But I know that I have to change something and that we as a team have to change something – maybe the attitude, maybe the aggressiveness at training.
“This season, what is important is that we kept all of our players. We are giving them a second year. We have continuity, which is always important. And we have to work better, prepare better and be in better condition.
“We have already changed a lot in one month. We have made some changes in the staffing and we have made one big change in the squad, with Hajime Hosogai showing in just this month that he is an unbelievable player. He has very clear leadership qualities on the pitch and a very clear work ethic.
“This will help me to make the changes I need. That’s why I’m very confident that we will do better. I like the team I have, I enjoy working with them every day and they are pushing hard. They also understand what happened (last year) and why it happened and they all really want to prove that with the same team, we can do things differently.”
While Pölking is keen to keep his players more focused on what they do and to worry less about their opponents, he foresees another tightly-contested battle for the title, with several clubs challenging. The most eye-catching move of the transfer window has been the loan deal that saw Heberty Fernandes move from Muangthong United to bitter rivals Port FC, and Pölking believes this makes Port one of the favourites.
“It’s very interesting to see how Heberty will do at Port,” he said. “He was probably, after Diogo left, the best player in the league. Port, with that big move and big investment, move one step higher. But, of course, you can never rule out Buriram and Muangthong United. They have nice stadiums, they have a foundation, they have history, they have fans and they have power.
“For me, they will always be title contenders because of that. For ten years, they were the only two champions, similar to Barcelona and Real Madrid in Spain. Chiang Rai United winning last year was a little like what Atletico Madrid once achieved.
“For Chiang Rai, it will be interesting to see how they cope with the loss of William Henrique because he was very important at some decisive moments. They have a new Brazilian – Mailson – but can he adapt quickly and will he have the same style?
“Bill and William’s partnership was just working. I said at the beginning of last season that Chiang Rai were not playing well but they were picking up points. When it came to the end of the season, they had a clear style. They defended well, they were always aggressive and they had two guys up front – one that could hold up play and one that ran like crazy. If someone can fill William’s boots, they will be dangerous again because they have kept most of the squad together.
“For Buriram, it’s the same. Can their new players adapt very quickly? Last season wasn’t a good one for most of their foreign signings but as we can see from the Thailand U23 squad, the three Buriram attackers make a good young Thai core along with Rattanakorn Maikaimi, Narubadin Weerawatnodom. Add the four or five foreign players and you have a great squad again.”
While the usual suspects might be the teams to look out for, Pölking has also identified some other clubs who may perform above expectations following some interesting additions to their squads.
“There may be some surprises,” he said. “Prachuap FC will be very strong at home. They are one of the few teams who have spent a lot of money. The same goes for Sukhothai. I know the new Brazilian striker Evandro Paulista and they have signed Ibson Melo from Samut Prakan City – a very good player. The two of them alongside John Baggio could make a very strong attack.
“Ratchaburi also have some very good players. They have kept their foreign players and added some quality Thai players.”
Pölking is also happy to welcome back two clubs who had surprisingly dropped into the second tier for a year.
“With Police Tero and BG Pathum United coming up, we have some clubs with tradition,” he said. “They are also back with some good investments. BG have three big men at the back, with Victor Cardozo adding a lot of experience. On the Thai side, they got Thitipan Puangchan back and Chaowat Veerachat is there. Toti – a very good player – has been there for a long time and striker Barros Tardelli is another good player. I think the league will be very close again.”
Bangkok United kick off their 2020 Thai League campaign at home to Prachuap FC on 15 February.
Photo: Bangkok United
