Originally published in The Times of India on October 10, 2019
Phil Brown will lead Hyderabad FC in their debut season in the Indian Super League. The 60-year-old Englishman’s achievements include leading Hull City to their first ever Premier League season in 2008.
As a player, he played right-back for clubs like Hartlepool United, Halifax Town and Bolton Wanderers.
He last coached ISL club FC Pune City in the 2018-19 season, joining them in December and leading them to the 7th position with 3 wins in 6 games.
Q. You have coached teams in English leagues, led Hull City to English Premier League and are now coaching teams in India. What would you say are the major differences between the two countries’ leagues?
Phil Brown: Indian clubs have foreign players and Indian players who have different strengths. Whereas Indian players are hard workers who will run through the wall, foreign players rely more on technique. At Hyderabad FC, we are aiming to teach the best qualities of Indian players to foreign players and vice-versa so that the team develops as a unit. I think the pressure of management is equal in all walks of football. What I want to do is to put myself under pressure to win something in India. I am here to try and create something. I have been given a platform to do it in the form of the Hyderabad FC team rising like a phoenix from the ashes of FC Pune City. I thrive on the pressure I am putting upon myself to win something.
Q. Given that this is a debut season of the club, what are your targets?
Phil Brown: If I can get a full stadium, it means I am doing something right. The team needs to perform better than FC Pune City last year. We need to win more than half of our games. If we achieve that, we will be near the top of the division. The ultimate aim is to be competitive and win something this season, whether it is the ISL title or the Super Cup.
Q. What tactical philosophy do you want the team to follow?
Phil Brown: I want the team to play possession-based football, but that will depend upon the type of opposition we face. For example, we will face ATK in our first match, who like to play counter-attacking football. They will try to hit us on the counter. Sometimes, you have to be cleverer than the other coach, especially when you come across coaches from different countries whom you have not met before. I have met every coach I have ever played against in England during my years there. Though I have met English coaches like Steve Coppel and John Gregory here, I have not met coaches from Spain or other countries.
Sometimes, you have to get the information from the players. The Hyderabad FC players are very tactically aware. For instance, Marcelinho has been reading a book on Pep Guardiola, which shows how his mentality is going into coaching and management. He knows Indian football better than I do as he has been here for 4 years. Guys like Marcelinho and Robin [Singh] are my cohorts. I have been relying on them for information.
Q. What formation are you going to employ with the team?
Phil Brown: We have planned for different formations during the preparation stage of the 6-7 week long preseason. You have to get the players’ mentality right with regards to the kinds of formation we are likely to face and the kinds of formation we are likely to play.
During the last season with FC Pune City, I played with three centre-backs. It was a 3-4-1-2 formation, but we drifted to the 3-5-2 when Marcelinho was not in the team. On a couple of occasions, we switched to a back four in a 4-3-3.
You have to work as a group of players with that kind of mentality. We put word through the captain and pass messages about the changes in formation. You need a total buy-in and understanding from the players, only then a change in system can work.
Hyderabad FC has centre-backs that can play in a back four formation and a back three formation as well. At the moment, I am favoring a three centre-back formation, though I might go for four at the back at any stage.
Q. Having experienced the Indian football system, what do you think are the steps required for Indian football to progress?
Phil Brown: I am in communication with Igor Stimac [Indian national football team coach] because we have three players representing the country. I want to try and make it more, if I possibly can. That would be a sign that we are making a good progress at the club. If we can increase the number to four to five players, that means we are playing the right kind of football. I have seen the Indian team under Stephen Constantine and have followed the change in management. There has not been a complete change of mentality and attitude. Constantine made some progress, but now Stimac has a good opportunity because a platform has been set.
I would like to think that the system in India should result in ISL and I-League joining forces one day. I think that has to be the way forward, because we play Super Cup at the end of the season with teams from ISL and I-League. If teams are capable of doing that on a weekly basis, then they are capable of competing in a league.
Last year, some clubs pulled out of the Indian Super Cup. For an outsider, it does not look good. You have to be united with regards to how the national team does. If there is internal wrangling, it does not do the national team any good. You have to be joint in your thinking, and if that means ISL and I-League joining forces, then so be it. If we can have a 20-22 team tournament, it will be a great competition and the national team will benefit from it.
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