The Boss Talks About A Thrilling Night At The Fortress And What Got Bengaluru The Win
On the chances in the first half…
I think we had a really good game. We were working with a lot of intensity, and we tried to take advantage of our strengths. Udanta was very good on counter attacks, particularly in the second half with Miku and Sunil up front. Even with the goal that we scored, Xisco provided a great assist to Miku. If you analyse the first half, yes, they had chances, but it was mostly owing to our mistakes in transition. Maybe because it was the first game of the season, or because it was a slightly different line-up in the defence compared to the Altyn Asyr game. They were a bit nervous, but they were very good tactically. Yes, we made a few personal mistakes, but they were quite good otherwise.
On difference between the two teams…
Everyone knows how Chennaiyin plays, they are a very competitive team and are the defending champions. These games are generally close and the one who scores the first goal can have the upper hand. If you are in the lead, you can control the game defensively and create space in the rival third. That’s what happened after we scored the first goal. If they would’ve scored with the chances they had, it would have been a different game. But this is normal in football when two teams are competitive.
On the physical aspect of the game…
Chennaiyin are a very competitive team, so you have to match their intensity and the physical strength, otherwise you will have problems. We worked on the same while preparing for the game, to have the lines together so that it’s difficult for them to make more passes and an opportunity where they can lose the ball for us to take advantage. The first goal was a transition from them and a one-touch pass from Xisco which opened up space for Miku to score. We tried to work on our plan against a team we know is competitive and got the result.
On Xisco Hernandez’s disappointment of getting substituted…
He had some issues with his stomach so he went out. We were 1-0 up and since we were a man down during that period, we had to take a decision. He was doing a good job, and he wanted to keep on playing. But small details are very important on the pitch and we felt that Chencho could give us extra energy in the final minutes. In the end, we got the win, so all is good.
On Harmanjot Khabra in midfield…
We had a little injury concern with Dimas and so he missed out the game. But I think Khabra did a great job in the midfield. He is an experienced player who has played in that position and gives us a great option going forward in the season. It was a first test for us and him as well, and he was very good in that.
On Albert Serran’s debut performance…
We were very happy with Albert’s performance as well. He had some issues with the visa which delayed his arrival. He joined the squad in Bengaluru about 8 days ago, but he has been training personally in Barcelona and was sending us constant updates from there. He played a full game after a long time, because in the pre-season he played about 60 minutes in the games. Tonight, it was a different intensity and we are happy with the players we have, and all of them gave their best throughout the game.
