Bengaluru: Tiki-taka is hardly a new phrase. Mention FC Barcelona's style of play and it almost instinctively comes to mind with the crisp 'tik' of a pass and the assured 'tak' of its reception -- a rhythm fans have come to associate with the club over the years.
But the idea runs deeper than just its catchy cadence. At its core, tiki-taka is about control; long spells of possession, drawing opponents out of shape, and patiently waiting for the right opening and was championed by famed coach Pep Guardiola.
Bengaluru FC management, in particular, seems to have affinity for such brand of football as their new head coach Pep Munoz becomes the third FC Barcelona academy or La Masia joinee after Albert Roca and Carles Cuadrat.
The club's love for the style seems too apparent as they risked doing so in the middle of the season, where previous coach Renedy Singh did a fine job by keeping BFC in run for the title.
Bengaluru FC appoints Spaniard Pep Munoz as head coach"So I came from Barca's La Masia, I like to control the game," said Munoz in his Catalan-accented English during his inaugural press conference here on Friday. "It's the only way that I understand that we can be closer to win. We want to have the ball possession because I want to win, I want to compete."
Munoz's arrival, delayed by a week, comes at a time when the club enters the most competitive phase of the league with some of the tough fixtures awaitng them and he gets just four days of training to prepare for it.
What he may like to bank upon the fact is his front three, unless he decides to change them, are firing goals. All of Sunil Chhetri, Ashique Kuruniyan, Ryan Williams (two goals each in all competitions) have made most of the chances created while their Argentinian attacking midfielder Braian Sanchez (3 goals in ISL this season) eased up pressure on them.
In fact, it will be unwise to tinker with the winning combination as the likes of Lalremtluanga Fanai, Uzbek Sirozhiddin Kuziev have seamlessly fit into crucial positions in midfield.
BFC are also expected to grab nothing less than three points in their upcoming match against Kerala Blasters. Not just because of the fierce fan rivalry between the two southern clubs but also because relegation-threatened KBFC appear to be an easy prey at the moment with six losses and a draw to their name.
After misfiring the first half of the season to a point of angering the devoted fanbase, the visitors are hoping that their new manager Ashley Westwood will put all his familiarity with BFC into good use after all the I-League success he oversaw more than a decade ago.