ISL 2016: Happy to play out draw and earn a crucial point, says Delhi Dynamos coach Gianluca Zambrotta
After a terrific outing against Chennaiyin FC, many predicted that the fixture against Kerala Blasters would be a walk in the park for the Delhi Dynamos, but in the end, it was the side from Delhi that just about managed to scrape a point. Most of the time in the game Delhi was seen sitting deep and defending as the Blasters attacked the away side.
The Delhi coach Gianluca Zambrotta seemed happy with the result and the performance of the side, “I am very happy with the result even though it was a draw. We had two injuries tonight and we had to play conservatively. We started very well in the first match and this was a tough match. At the moment, I am happy with 4 points and look to win the next game.”
When asked about why Richard Gadze did not start, Zambrotta replied, “No specific reason. I chose a different striker as we thought we needed a striker who was strong and more physical. It was a strong match. Each match is different. In the last match, Badji came in and scored. But today he could not score but that doesn’t make it a bad decision.”
Great atmosphere but tough to play in these conditions
The Delhi Dynamos player Kean Lewis was asked to comment on the experience of playing in front of this crowd, “It was a great atmosphere with lots of fans. It was tough to play in these conditions, we are playing our second consecutive away game and as a result, we were tired. But we are happy with the game. I think the ball came on really fast on this pitch. We had some difficulty but nonetheless it was a good pitch. Both teams played on the same pitch so no problems.”
Delhi coach Zambrotta also seems to be satisfied with the performance from their marquee player Florent Malouda even though there were no goals scored, “Malouda played in the position where Moura played last game. He played alongside Milan Singh ahead of Tebar. Today, I am happy about his performance.”
When asked to comment on why the Dynamos midfielders were not seen more in the attack, the Italian replied- “I am satisfied with the performance of my midfielders. The whole team ran for 90 minutes and we could not have asked for more.”
He also said that the Kerala-born defender Anas Edathodika is recovering fast and was hopeful that he will rejoin the team in a short period of time, “At the moment we do not know exactly the extent of Anas’s injury. Tomorrow, we go to Delhi and have the doctors assess him. He recovered well yesterday and hopefully he will be available to play soon.”
Delhi Dynamos will take on NorthEast United FC in their first home match on October 15.
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