NorthEast United FC play their first away game of the 2018-19 Hero Indian Super League (ISL) season when they take on ATK at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on Thursday. The Highlanders were unlucky not to gain a victory in their season opener against FC Goa and thus, will be hopeful of bagging all three points against the two-time champions. Prior to matchday, the visiting club’s head coach Eelco Schattorie was available at the pre-match press conference to take questions from the media.

The Dutchman started off by talking about his team’s performance against Goa and the positives he took from the game. “First of all, I think it was a good result for us because our pre-season was pretty difficult as we weren’t really tested. You play your first game against Goa, who have the same coach, same kind of players and similar strategies, so a 2-2 draw is actually a very good result. You could see that we wanted to get a result. Of course, we wanted to win, you can see that from the second half chances, but overall, I’m happy with the result.”

The NorthEast coach also spoke of their opponents of the night and the difficult playing conditions in Kolkata. “ATK, who lost their first game, will be playing us at home. We needed today’s rest. They have had four days of rest. Playing in this humidity will be more difficult. So, of course, it’s a challenge.”

The Highlanders have not made it to the playoffs in the league’s history, but this time there are a lot of expectations on the new- look team. When asked about the pressure he’s facing, Schattorie remarked that the expectations are part of the job and that he always gives his best. “Anywhere you go, people will always expect you to win and I always tell myself, I can only work from day to day, assess what we have and then try to do my best.”

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