3 – Use the Pre-season for what it is…a Pre-season
The BGPU management admitted that, in hindsight, a poor 2018 pre-season played a massive part in the club’s relegation.
Former Adelaide United boss Aurelio Vidmar left since July 2017 but it wasn’t until late November that Josep Ferré was officially confirmed as the new man in charge even though he was already working as Vidmar’s assistant beforehand.
If the club truly had faith in Ferré’s vision, the Spanish coach would’ve been given the job right after Vidmar’s departure. The club’s seemingly last-minute pre-season fixture announcement didn’t give the fans much confidence. Khonkaen FC, BGs feeder club from T2, completely outplayed and knocked the Rabbits out of the LEO pre-season cup – a friendly tournament organized by BG’s biggest sponsor.
This result and the unforgivable performance had the supporters raging. We later found out that the players had only arrived for training just a little over a week before the humiliating defeat. The pre-season prioritized sponsorship over football and it had a negative effect on the pitch.
Back to the present, BGPU seems to be getting down to business straight after the title celebration. Head coach Dusit Chalermsan contract was deservedly extended last week and with that, guaranteed key players such as Toti, Barros Tardeli and Irfan Fandi will be staying. On top of that, Filipino international centre-back Álvaro Silva and midfield terrier Yuki Bambi will also join from Suphanburi FC and Trat FC. That’s two players with T1 experience to add further quality and depth to the squad.
Dusit proved at the beginning of last season that he can organize an effective pre-season as evidence by BGPU’s 9 wins from the first 10 league games. Training ground hours must be available for Dusit and less of congested friendlies with other interests in mind.
Getting knocked out off 2 domestic cup competition by Bangkok United and Chiangrai United isn’t the worst result but most importantly it serves as a valuable reminder of the standards of top-flight football – something BGPU will aspire to match. The team must play with a higher intensity level and the only way to keep up is to prepare well and have a strong pre-season.