The Boss Discusses A Dominant Win And Incredible Support From The Stands
The Blues ended 2017 in style beating Kerala Blasters 3-1 at the JN Stadium in Kochi. While it was Bengaluru who dominated almost all aspects of the game, a late flurry of goals allowed striker Miku to take his tally to 8 goals and join FC Goa’s Ferran Corominas at the top of the ISL scorer’s chart. Speaking at the post-match press conference, Coach Albert Roca discussed various aspects of the match.
On the deadlock being broken in the second half and the injury time flurry of goals…
Scoring a goal is the most difficult thing in football. Sometimes you need so many chances to score just one goal. I think we worked very well from the beginning, except for maybe the first fifteen minutes where the balance was very much same. After that I think that my team was far superior. Yes, we would like not to suffer so much, by scoring only at the end, when we created so many chances throughout the game. But we have to learn from the situation and try to kill the game when we are leading and dominating. Kerala also defended really well, and made our job tough. After losing twice at home, our confidence wasn’t high, but I think this result will help us.
On the midfield dominance…
We knew Wes Brown is an experienced player with some good quality, and we tried to create problems for him. But at the same time, we have enough quality in our team to manage that situation. I think Dimas and Paartalu had a fantastic game in the midfield. But I think all my players took their game to another level to get the all-important win.
On Rahul Bheke playing in multiple positions…
With the rules, we can play only five foreigners at once. So at times we go with both foreigners or with an Indian player and a foreigner. With Johnson being out of action today, we went with Rahul and Juanan. Rahul is a versatile player who has played for us at different positions across the defense and today he had a really good game. Maybe he is more comfortable in the full back position, and we need players like him who will slot in at any position and get the job done.
On top-scorer Miku’s performance…
We dominated the game completely apart from the first fifteen minutes where it was an equal battle. We knew that only one goal in the second half won’t be enough and it was just about playing the same way. Miku is a top player, and he has been showing that all season, and we hope he keeps it going till the end of the season. It will be difficult for sure, but today he did a real good job. He is a player who not just scores but also keeps the ball very well. He is someone who fits in perfectly with our team and we are very happy with his performance.
On the travelling Blues…
First I would like to congratulate Kerala, because they have a fantastic fan base. They come here every game to support their team despite the result, and today was the same. As a BFC Coach I am very happy to have our special supporters, who travelled here and everywhere else to support us apart from the huge support at the Fortress. After losing the two games, I was very disappointed, because I wanted to win for them. Football without supporters can’t exist. They are the most important in this sport. I hope Kerala fans will back their team despite the result as the Bengaluru fans have been doing for the last four years.