Bitter end to a surreal run for BFC

Final triumph a shot in the arm for troubled Bagan

There is something about a fairytale ending that we all crave. A fitting finale for the senses. One that assures, even if fleetingly, that there are forces that believe in the romance of it all.

Bengaluru FC were looking for their fairytale ending. After all, the stars had aligned to get them to the Indian Super League final. How often does a team, struggling for two-and-a-half years, go on a 10-game winning run, win back their faithful, play extra time in both rounds of the knockouts, and beats the best team in the country on penalties in the semifinal?

As early as January, the winning run still in its infancy, they believed this was their year. For this is a club that achieved because they believed. But on Saturday, the cruel reality was laid bare.

Bengaluru lost their main striker in the first five minutes, conceded an early goal, and went ahead late in the second half before losing to their famed rivals ATK Mohun Bagan in a penalty shootout.

"We had an unbelievable period but we couldn't quite get to the magical line and get the break in the penalty shootout. It was one of the nights where it didn't go for us," said a gaunt-looking Simon Grayson, Bengaluru's head coach.

"We have achieved something getting to the final but no one will remember the team that loses the final."

The operative word for their season within the camp was 'have no regrets'. But this loss will hurt, tinged with regret too. But Bengaluru have bounced back before. The last time they lost the ISL final, they won it the following year. This year, they won't need to wait a year. The Super Cup starts next month.

"Take it in when you see the opposition celebrating. Use it as motivation moving forward. We will dwell on it, we will sulk and hopefully, we will bounce back," remarked Grayson.

"That is what BFC does," Gurpreet Singh Sandhu reiterated. He should know. Every story has two sides. So does this one.

It was redemption for Bagan, a club with over 100 years behind them, struggling with fan protests following the merger with ATK. A team struggling to blend together its identity, a matter complicated further by its impending rechristening to Mohun Bagan Super Giants in a tip of the hat to the owners' Indian Premier League venture.

It retains one quality, however. ATK, Bagan, ATKMB, Bagan Super Giants - call them what you will, they are winners. It is in the veins, coded into some corner of the DNA.
This was a title won on character, more than football.

Juan Ferrando's appointment was to get the team to play a different way - with possession, flair, and panache. Success was never an issue. And they've had a rough go of it. Bad campaign in Asia, bad decisions in other tournaments, injuries, inconsistencies... But when the going got tough, they found a way.

"For us, it was up, down, up, down... normally a team in this situation, they don't keep going," said Ferrando after winning the title. "People don't know about the injuries. Some players became fathers and did not visit the hospital, some lost grandfathers, and fathers. Sometimes they were tired and received criticism. They are human. But here is a great future."

For Ferrando and his men, this win is vital. One that could bring it all together. But that is for another day. Today, as Ferrando said as he walked away, they are champions.