ISL semifinals: NorthEast United v Bengaluru - The story of Udanta Singh and ensuring he’s not a Flash in the Pan
The defenders had him figured out. They knew he would dribble and move up to the touchline, drag the ball back, dribble some more - beating them with his pace all this while - and finally try to play it to the middle. And all they have to do is keep up and physically overpower him.
That was Udanta Singh. But what is Udanta Singh now?
The defenders themselves are unsure. He surely runs down the flank, drags it back and tries to find Sunil Chhetri or Miku. But there are two additional traits he has developed under Carles Cuadrat during this Indian Super League season, which leaves the opposition gasping for breath most of the times.
The guy who used to shy away from taking shots even if he’s right next to the goalpost is now scoring at will for Bengaluru FC. This is the same Udanta who chose to back-heel the ball to Anirudh Thapa when India played Thailand at the AFC Asian Cup in January.
But is he, really?
The 5 goals and 2 assists in this ISL season is an unusual stat when you talk about Udanta because this is a player who had 1 goal and 7 assists last time around.
A big reason for Udanta’s newfound love for scoring goals has been the additional responsibility handed to him by coach Cuadrat in the absence of the injured Miku from November to February and Sunil Chhetri’s dip in form during the same time.
This, the 22-year-old player admits, is because he has worked on his defensive and tracking back abilities, which have given the same defenders who had him figured a tougher time.
“As the season progressed, we had a few injuries in the attacking department, especially with Miku being out for a crucial part of the League stages,” Udanta said in an interview with Sportskeeda. “I realized that it was important that I stepped up because losing a player of his quality will obviously affect the team. I made it a point to try and get into goalscoring positions more often and that has helped.”
The first of those came against Mumbai City FC in the 1-1 draw back in December, almost 2 months after the ISL 5 had begun. And that sort of pushed him to crave for more as he got going with strikes against Pune City (2-1), Delhi Dynamos (1-0), FC Goa (3-0) and Kerala Blasters (2-2) in the league stages.
Udanta Singh - 'Defending more'
What’s really changed about Udanta though is that he won’t talk about the goals he has scored. He would rather talk about the goals he has saved.
“I think the major difference (with me from previous seasons) is that I’m defending now more than I ever have in my career. The coach demands a lot of defensive work from the attacking players and that has played a crucial role in our run this season.
“As a winger, I know that the primary role is to score goals or assist them, but this season I am also paying attention to my defensive work and working harder to help the team at the back,” Udanta said.
'Losing in ISL final tough pill to take' - Udanta Singh
Now that the knockout stages are approaching, all Udanta is hoping for is to avoid a repeat of the 2017-18 season, where they topped the table but toppled to the Chennaiyin FC challenge in the ISL final.
“The 2017-18 journey is still fresh in all our minds. All of us know that despite finishing the League at the top, we weren’t able to win the cup and, in many ways, it still does motivate us. We’re all determined to go one better this season because losing the cup in the final was a tough pill to take and we want to give ourselves a chance to make amends,” Udanta said.
But first up is the semifinal visit to Guwahati, which Udanta calls a tough clash. “NorthEast United are a very good team. You can see how much better they’ve become than in previous seasons and we know that the game in Guwahati will be a tough one. They made it really hard for us to break them down when we went there in the League stages and we know that we will have to be sharp to make sure we don’t slip up,” Udanta said.
Some things though will never change. Udanta has to sometimes be reminded that he needs to score a lot more goals and who better than team captain Sunil Chhetri to push him further?
“Sunil Chhetri is my room partner on away trips, and he’s always telling me how I can do things better to make use of my pace and it has always helped,” Udanta said.
All about the finish for Udanta Singh
Yet, why did he pass to Thapa to set up the third goal in India’s 4-1 win over Thailand?
“As a winger, sometimes you have to be selfish and sometimes you have to be selfless,” Udanta said. “I have often made the wrong decision, taking a shot when I should pass and passing when I should have a go at goal myself, but that’s how I learn.
“To be honest, when Sunil bhai passed the ball to me, I thought I was through on goal but the Thai winger had tracked back to put me under pressure. I had to turn, and when I did, I saw that Anirudh was in a good position, so I played the pass to him and everyone saw how good the finish was.”
A good finish. Now that’s what Udanta is looking for in the closing stages of the ISL.
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