Bengaluru FC captain Sunil Chhetri (right) at a practice session in Bengaluru on Monday. The I-League champions play Tampines Rovers in their AFC Cup quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.
Bengaluru FC captain Sunil Chhetri (right) at a practice session in Bengaluru on Monday. The I-League champions play Tampines Rovers in their AFC Cup quarter-final first leg on Wednesday.
As Bengaluru FC prepare to continue their charge in the AFC Cup when they face Tampines Rovers on Wednesday in the quarter-finals at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume a major change in the side’s look and philosophy.
The I-League champions have former Barcelona assistant manager Albert Roca in the hot seat, a new look midfield, bolstered by two new faces, and a fresh and untested backline coming into this match. Despite the changes, captain Sunil Chhetri is optimistic of his team’s chances in the two-legged tie. Excerpts:
How different is Roca from Westwood He’s different in terms of fitness and assessment but the way we play (attack) is similar. Not one better than the other but it’s just two different systems and that’s why it takes time to adjust to him. We’re trying to get what he wants from us.
With his background, you know that he would want you to keep the ball a lot. At the end of the day, he wants to win like any other coach.
The intensity and the way we press won’t change but the way we go forward will be a little different than what we did previously. Can you give us an idea about the opponents We have not seen much either (of Tampines Rovers). They are a good side and have done a lot to get here. We’ll see more videos in the coming days but we’re working hard on ourselves.
The focus is on what we want to do and not the opponent as of now. Expectations from first game under new coach Now, wherever we play, expectations will be there. We are two-time champions and have also won the Fed Cup. Fans will expect good things from us. Our work is to give our best. What happens in a game you can’t predict now but you need to give it everything. That’s all we want. In Cameron Watson, you have someone with experience in the AFC Champions League. Your thoughts on him There’s no dearth of experience. You’re talking about Cameron, who has 300 La Liga games under his belt. He’s played with the Ronaldos and the Messis week in and week out. Also there’s Lyngdoh who is a superstar, so we don’t lack in that department.
The midfield looks really strong. The only worry for us is to understand what the coach wants and execute it.
