I League: Westwood hopes RoundGlass Punjab FC can challenge for title

When
the
whole
the
world
has
come
to
a
standstill
due
to
the
outbreak
of
the
novel
coronavirus
(COVID-19)
outbreak
last
year,
RoundGlass
Sports
made
a
bold
move
to
acquire
100
per
cent
stake
in
the
erstwhile
Minerva
FC
Punjab.

And
as
the
Mohali-based
cub
gets
ready
for
I
League,
Westwood
is
brimming
with
confidence.

15th
edition
of
the
Hero
I-League
to
kick
off
on
Boxing
Day

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—
Hero
I-League
(@ILeagueOfficial)

December
7,
2021

“The
Club
has
been
thought
about
and
built
for
the
right
reasons.
Our
founder
Sunny
(Gurpreet)
Singh
has
a
keen
interest
in
sports
and
wants
to
create
opportunities
for
the
children
and
youth
of
Punjab,
where
he
hails
from,
to
play
sports.
He
wants
to
enable
the
wholistic
well-being
of
people
through
not
just
sports
but
also
a
focus
on
nutrition,
learning,
encouraging
a
healthy
lifestyle,
and
other
aspects,”

Westwood
said
in
a
virtual
interaction
with
the
media.

Minerva
FC
was
officially
renamed
Punjab
FC
after
Bajaj
sold
50
per
cent
stake
to
new
owners
and
in
March
2020,
RoundGlass
came
on
board
after
acquiring
the
remaining
stakes.

“We
want
to
create
a
healthy,
honest,
and
hard-working
team
and
aim
to
inspire
young
people
with
our
performances
and
style
of
play,
in
line
with
Sunny’s
vision,
which
includes
providing
a
genuine
platform
that
the
children
and
youth
of
Punjab
look
up
to,
are
inspired
by,
and
that
helps
nurture
their
dreams
of
becoming
sportspersons,”
added,
Westwood,
who
is
a
two-time
I
League
winner
with
Bengaluru
FC,
who
now
ply
their
trade
in
Indian
Super
League
(ISL).

a

RoundGlass
Punjab
FC’s
pre-season
training
began
in
October
and
the
team
has
been
in
Kolkata
since,
with
the
players
and
support
staff
being
housed
in
a
bio-bubble
secure
environment.

“Pre-season
has
been
good.
It’s
a
new
team
and
the
more
time
we
spend
with
each
other,
the
better
it
is.
Being
in
this
environment,
which
means
living
and
working
together
day
in
and
day
out,
helps
bring
the
team
together
and
allows
us
to
find
out
more
about
one
another
and
understand
the
character
of
each
member
of
the
team,
which
is
part
of
our
decision-making
process.
Another
benefit
of
being
together
is
that
we
can
focus
on
football,
as
there
are
no
distractions,
and
we
can
control
the
environment.
We
are
trying
to
keep
things
challenging
for
the
players
and,
at
the
same
time,
ensure
athat
it
is
not
monotonous,”
Westwood
said.

Englishman
Westwood,
who
is
a
seasonel
professional
with
over
25
years
of
experience
as
a
player
and
coach,
joined
RoundGlass
Punjab
FC
as
the
head
coach
in
July.

The
club,
after
an
impressive
I
League
debut
under
new
ownership
last
season,
made
a
strong
statement
of
intent
in
the
summer
transfer
window
as
well.

“The
players
we
have
signed
give
us
balance
and
have
been
brought
onboard
for
not
only
their
abilities
but
also
their
professionalism
and
experience.
I
know
the
players
I’ve
worked
with
earlier
will
do
things
the
right
way
and
be
role
models
for
not
only
the
younger
players
at
the
club,
but
also
those
at
our
Academy
and
our
fans.
We
wanted
a
balance
of
youth
and
experience
in
the
squad
so
we
can
challenge
for
the
I
League,”
Westwood
said.

The
Punjab
outfit
begin
their
campaign
against
Rajasthan
United
FC
at
7.30pm
on
December
26.