Kerala Blasters FC head coach Ivan Vukomanovic dismissed the excitement surrounding Sunday's game against Bengaluru FC in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL), even though the two clubs have seen some intense encounters in the past.
The game will be a thriller regardless of the result; the Blasters would be desperate for a first win after losing to ATK Mohun Bagan in their opener and being held to a 0-0 draw by NorthEast United FC.
On the eve of their game against Bengaluru FC, head coach Vukomanovic and new signing Harmanjot Khabra, who previously played for the Blues, addressed the media during the official pre-match press conference.
What are the issues you observed during the first two matches? And what are the solutions you have in your mind?
Vukomanovic: Well, when you start the competition, and when you start the official games, there are many things that occurred during the games, and actually you have to be capable of modifying certain things during those moments. So actually, we saw in the first game that we were committing some mistakes that resulted, not in our favor. And then in the second game, we try to solve that problem, to not repeat them. So actually, we wanted to have more stability with our defense line, we wanted to have more stability with shortening the space between the lines, and that's what we did in the second game.
Your overall defense was good in the last game, but your team still lost the ball in our own half a few times. So with Bengaluru FC expected to play a high press, is that a concern for the team?
Vukomanovic: Yeah, always, when you play high up the pitch, even if you play against the teams from a lower division, it will open the space behind your back, because when you stay up the pitch, there is a lot of space behind the back. So these kinds of things are good, not only in our games, not only in every game in the ISL but around the world even if you watch the games on the highest level, these kinds of things occur. But we are working on those things, to know how we stay when we don't have the ball, and how we play when we have the ball.
The Kerala Blasters FC vs Bengaluru FC match is very exciting among fans, does this put any pressure on Kerala Blasters?
Vukomanovic: No, because for us it's a football game. Of course, some games, they have more spicy things in it like this is the case now. But actually, for us, the coaching staff, the players, it's a football game. So the approach is always the same. We have to be fully concentrated and focus on the things we want to achieve on the pitch, and that's it. Many other kinds of supplementary pressure, there is no sign whatsoever. So we are doing our job and we are preparing for the game.