I was never in Steve Coppell’s plans, says Eugensson Lyngdoh

Coming to Bengaluru FC has been like a breath of fresh air for Lyngdoh, who has come out of one of his worst club stints. After making a big name for himself and even making it to the national team, Lyngdoh moved to two-time ISL champions ATK at the start of the 2017-18 season.

However, he tore his knee ligament three games into the season and he had to sit out for close to a whole year. ATK had changed coaches from Teddy Sheringham to Coppell by the time Lyngdoh recovered but wasn’t a part of the new manager’s plan.

"I had an up-front talk with the coach and he said I was never in his plans. Obviously, it's frustrating, neither playing nor being able to get out of the club. As a player, I had to live with it and never lose heart. I could've just faded away but I wanted to play football. That driving force kept me going. That's what made me turn up for training sessions even knowing that I was never going to get picked. It was hard," said Lyngdoh, reported Sportstar.

"It was something I knew I had to fight within myself. It was easy for me to go away and hide. But I used every training session to build myself. It was a testing time in my football career," he added.

It was with the Blues that Lyngdoh had first made a name for himself as one of the finest midfielders in the country, under the tutelage of Albert Roca and Carles Cuadrat. He was a crucial part of the side that reached the AFC Cup final in 2016 under. 

With Cuadrat now the head coach of the franchise, Lyngdoh sounded happy to play under him again and stated that the Spaniard has faith in him. "I'm with a coach who's got faith in me. BFC is the only team here that actually sticks with a coach and builds on a philosophy. You want to go to a team that is like that.

“Unlike a team that has a different coach every year. The philosophy of the team changes every season and you never know what's going to happen," added the 33-year-old.