Top 5 ISL and I-League coaches who are expected to leave next season
The curtains have come down on the 2018-19 season of the Indian Super League (ISL) and I-League with both Bengaluru FC and Chennai City FC etching their name into the history books of the respective competitions, after being crowned champions at the end of their respective pulsating campaigns.
While the domestic football season in India proved to be a memorable experience for some this year, a few others were left disappointed at the outcome of what kicked-off as a promising journey.
Some high-profile names like David James and Miguel Angel Portugal were sacked during the ISL season with a few I-League clubs, including former champions Aizawl FC and Mohun Bagan, also wielding the axe to provide some casualties on the touchline.
In addition to the aforementioned names, several other coaches are also expected to make their way out of certain clubs as they aim to seek greener pastures.
John Gregory has already confirmed that he won't be in charge of two-time ISL champions Chennaiyin FC next season, but others like Jorge Costa, who extended his stay for another year at Mumbai City FC, could have another shot at glory next year.
In this segment, we take a look at the top five ISL and I-League coaches who could leave their clubs ahead of the new season:
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#5 Sachin Badadhe (Minerva Punjab)
Sachin Badadhe's rise to prominence within the Indian footballing circuit has been nothing short of spectacular. The Maharashtrian coach ran a tea shop before marking his advent into professional coaching and later winning the I-League as an assistant coach under Paul Munster at Minerva Punjab last season.
Despite their unprecedented success and the march to the I-League title in 2017/18, Minerva struggled to replicate similar fortunes in the recently concluded season and their ill-fated title defence forced Munster to resign from the managerial role.
Ranjit Bajaj turned to Badadhe to take over at the club on an interim basis for the remaining few games of the season in February, and the caretaker manager mustered a solitary win out of three games in charge of the club.
Although Badadhe has played an integral role under Munster in the previous two seasons, it is highly unlikely that Minerva will appoint him on a permanent basis for the upcoming season as they aim to do better than the second-bottom finish they managed this term.
As such, Badadhe could be in line to be step down into the role of a deputy again or even leave the club as the former champions aim to ring in the changes in a bid to try and put the disappointment of finishing at 10th-place behind them.