David Platt is delighted that Pune City fashioned a 3-1 victory over Mumbai City and began the second season of the Indian Super League on a bright note at the multi-purpose stadium here at Balewadi.
Having replaced Italian Franco Colomba as coach, the former England midfielder has restructured Pune’s squad and found immediate success. Seasoned Turkish professional Tuncay Sanli was one of the notable players Platt chose and the 33-year-old proved his worth with a solid performance, scoring twice off headers. The home team’s convincing win in the ‘Maharashtra Derby’ is bound to see it take the field against NorthEast United FC with plenty of confidence.
While Platt has been talking of following a process and controlling the match with a high percentage of ball possession, his counterpart, Venezuelan Cesar Farias, is trying to put on a brave face after the 3-1 drubbing at the hands of Kerala Blasters in Kochi.
“Friday is a new match and a new opportunity,’’ said Farias. “It will be a difficult match for us. They [Pune] were fluid with the ball and they have an experienced side.’’ Last year, the Guwahati-based NEUFC lost the home match 2-0 to Pune and drew the away match here.
Platt rested Sanli 15 minutes into the second half against the Mumbai team. “It’s important that we don’t risk injuries,” he said. “We wanted to avoid a [Helder] Postiga-like situation [for ATK]. I also wanted to give [Adrian] Mutu some minutes and yes, Mutu is ready for selection tomorrow.”
Platt refused to hazard a guess about NEUFC’s state of mind. “I have no idea of their mindset, but they’ll want to win. We can’t rest on the last game. You can’t judge from just two games. Now, you have a small opinion, but that’s still incomplete and distorted. We need to wait and analyse who the strong teams are.’’
The home team will miss Pritam Kotal, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Jackichand Singh, Pronay Halder and Bikash Jairu, all part of the Indian team for the World Cup qualifier match against Turkmenistan. “It’s sad they’re missing, but I’ve already planned the time without them,” sad Platt. “I wasn’t aware of Bikash’s absence. As a coach it’s tough, but I’m delighted for him with regards to representing the country.’’
Farias meanwhile spoke of the need for NEUFC to seize the moment. “The mentality of the players is correct,” he said. “It’s a new opportunity. They are inclined to correct whatever happened in the last game. We have to compete and play to our maximum potential tomorrow. Every game has different tactics. Now is the moment to seize the inspiration and prepare well to meet the opposition. We can get one or three points. Anything is possible.”
