Kerala Blasters make Stahre 'scapegoat' for 'defending' his players. 'Cowardice,' say Manjappada

Kerala Blasters fans have reacted angrily to the sacking of head coach Mikael Stahre. "He is not the reason for our failures," replied a fan under the Blasters' official post announcing Stahre's departure.  

"Wrong decision by the management. He was doing a pretty good job. The problem was with goalkeepers and the defence of the team," wrote another fan. The majority of the comments empathised with Stahre, who took over in May after the club parted ways with fan favourite Ivan Vukomanovic.

It is to be noted that the Blasters management had come under severe pressure from Manjappada, the club's biggest fan group. "The sudden sacking of our coach is a clear indication of the management's desperation to divert attention from their own ineptitude. Rather than taking responsibility for their own failures, they've chosen to make a scapegoat of a coach who has given his all to the team," posted Manjappada. "This move reeks of cowardice and a lack of accountability. The management's inept handling of the team's affairs, including poor transfers, and a lack of clear vision, are the real reasons behind our team's struggles.

"Sacking the coach won't solve these deep seated problems, but it will certainly give the management a temporary reprieve from scrutiny. Shame on them for taking the easy way out!Enough is enough! Management, Your mess, he pays the price, Your scapegoating tactics won't fool us," Manjappada posted.

Attacking coach
Stahre's tenure began with the Durand Cup, in which the Blasters reached the quarterfinals. Despite starting his ISL campaign with a 1-2 home defeat to Punjab FC, Stahre got the Blasters back on track, winning two and drawing two more in their next four matches. His style of play was pleasing to the eye.

Under his management, the Blasters scored at least one goal in their first nine league matches, a club record. With a 3-0 home win over Chennaiyin FC, he famously ended a run of 18 games without a clean sheet, a dubious record that stretched into the second half of last season.

Coach who 'defended' his players
The Swedish coach passionately defended his players at press conferences, even when individual mistakes led to defeats. Before the first international break in October, the Blasters dropped four points from winning positions against NorthEast United and Odisha FC. In both away matches, goalkeeping and defensive errors proved decisive.

Young Thrissur goalkeeper Sachin Suresh's first big error came in the second match of the season against NorthEast (1-1) when a direct freekick rolled in from under his clutches. However, Stahre stood firm behind his keeper. "Sachin is a great goalkeeper, he has been good for us. He's coming back from an injury. From that perspective, there won't be any changes," Stahre said when enquired about the possibility of dropping Sachin for the match against Mohammedan SC.

Poor goalkeeping from Sachin led to at least two more defeats. He was guilty of conceding from a tame effort that looked more like a cross in a 0-1 home defeat to FC Goa. He also spilt a routine collect to give a simple tap-in for Mohun Bagan Super Giant's opener in a 2-3 defeat in Kolkata.

But it wasn't just Sachin, the second-choice goalkeeper Som Kumar spilled a regulation catch, dropping the ball at the feat of of a striker in the Blasters' 1-3 home defeat to Bengauru. His error happened when the score was 1-1. In the same match, veteran defender Pritam Kotal gave away the ball easily to Jorge Pereyra Diaz. The Bengaluru striker pinged the ball from Kotal, who was too casual under pressure.

Stahre was furious after the match, but when asked about the individual mistakes, he replied: “It is really important for me not to throw anyone under the bus. We are a team; we have to support each other. I hope the yellow family is also supporting us.”