2 – Don’t get giddy with big names.
Speaking of forcing players into a system, the club mustn’t get giddy with big names available in the market. The whole league was shocked when BGPU was relegated at the end of 2018 and many fans are expecting the club to showcase their wealth, making a statement for the comeback.
So, although it’s a cliche, a successful football team is always more than the sum of its parts. In their last T1 season, Thai football maverick, Mario Gjurovski was snatched up from Bangkok United. Needing to be the star of the team, there were rumors of Gjurovski clashing with captain Matt Smith. Whether the gossip is true or not, nobody knows – but the fact remains that Gjurovski struggled to settle.
Upfront, Stipe Plazibat, a proven goalscorer Hougang United and Home United, and big man Frédéric Mendy were brought in from the S League and K League respectively, but neither fit in with head coach Josep Ferré’s direction and failed to make any real impact at all.
This time, Mr.Pavin recently made it clear that, if the club receives no buying offers for Thitipan Puangchan, the midfielder, now on-loan at J1 League side Oita Trinita, he will return to BGPU.
The box-to-box Thitipan will be a surely improvement on the already competitive BGPU midfield option. Add to that the transfer speculation regarding Charyl Chappuis, which is gaining traction, and the rumors of another “senior Thai International” midfielder and you can see that the club is trying the snatch what they can.
Head coach Dusit Chalermsan once pointed to the squad’s lack of natural wingers as his reason for playing a back three and using the wing-backs to provide width. Chakrit Laptrakul’s flair down the flanks was a much welcome asset following his return from Japanese side Tokushima Vortis. The worrying sign is that, so far, BGPU is yet to be linked with winger. Chakrit alone won’t be enough.
Brazilian center-back, Victor Cardozo, of the disbanded PTT Rayong is another Thai League superstar heavily linked with a move to BGPU. Just like Thitipan and Chappuis, Victor Cardozo would make a great addition to the squad based on his quality alone but the real question is; how many, T1 starter grade, centrebacks does BGPU need? Maybe a Thai League-proven winger or other area Dusit wants strengthen would be a more worthwhile investment.