Coach Albert Roca Spoke About The Team Morale, Replacing Roby Norales and The Absence Of John Johnson. Excerpts…
Reaction on the hard fought game and coming out with a point…
Honestly, the team morale has been low following the three loses in a row. To add to our woes the injuries in our team, mainly in defence, has made it tough going. Dave Rodgers has done well with the DSK squad and they have put on a tough display against teams like Mohun Bagan.
They were the better team for most part of the game and may have deserved to win. But we showed resilience and put out a fight and deserve this point. Hopefully, we will take advantage of this experience and start the campaign fresh from here.
On dealing with winning three and then losing three in a row…
We’ve had very tough games before this fixture, just five days back we were playing in Jordan in the Asian Champions League qualifier. The Wehdat loss did take a toll on the team and even on the coaching staff and we have been recuperating from it. Coming to Pune, we always expected DSK Shivajians to play tough. But our team fought back and our determination to improve was on display in the second half performance. This is still not enough as we have a long way to go and we need to keep pushing ourselves to improve.
On missing Johnson’s presence in defence…
Johnson is an important part of our defensive set up, but he has been playing with an injury for the last three games. The lay-off after the disciplinary ruling will give him some time to heal and recover. His absence will also give a chance for others to step up. Today Salam Ranjan returned from an injury to put up a fine performance.
On the League opening up to be more than a two-horse race…
We have to try to improve and get better in all aspects. Yes, we are chasing Bagan, who have a good lead right now. The League is short but very dynamic in its nature, so much so that a couple of wins for us and losses for table toppers might help us turn things around.
On replacing striker Roby Norales, who has been sent on loan…
Yes, we are looking for options, but it isn’t easy in the middle of a season. There is a need to reinforce the offensive line in the squad, but if we fail to sign someone we’d expected someone from the squad to step up and take up the responsibility.
I’m aware that some of our players will be called up for national duty three weeks from now. Playing for the national team is something that they worked all their lives for and I can never stop them. All I can hope is that they don’t pick up injuries. We will rotate the other players to fit in to the scheme of things in their absence.
