Chennaiyin FC travel to the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Goa on Saturday to face FC Goa in the first leg of the second semi-final of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18. The 2015 champions finished second in the league table and are currently unbeaten in their last five encounters. Defender Inigo Calderon has been a key figure in their squad, putting in solid defensive performances while also racing forward from time to time, which saw him notch three goals from his 17 appearances for the club. The Spaniard spoke to indiansuperleague.com prior to the match and shared his thoughts on the crucial game ahead. Here are the excerpts.

How will the semi-finals be different from the league stage?

Well, I think the semi-finals are always different because they are like two finals in one. In just one game if you concede a goal or make a big mistake, it can all be over. The league is different because even if you have a bad day, you can still recover because you have more games. But in the semi-finals, you have to be perfect in two games or you don’t have a chance.

If there was one team whom you wanted to avoid, who would it be?

The ones that are there (in the semi-final) are there for a reason. Obviously, the table does not lie. The four teams are there because they are the best four. So, it’s not a big difference. Each team has their own strengths and weak points but are mainly very similar.

Would you rather have preferred to play the first leg at home or away?

I don’t really mind either one. Before usually, they used to say it is advantageous to play the second leg at home, but I don’t think that because sometimes you play the first one at home and you get a result and then you just have to defend away from home. Like I said, it doesn’t matter. It isn’t a big deal for me. The only difference is that you can play with extra time if you play at home. But I don’t think it is that big a point. As soon as you get there, it is just two games.

What is the mindset of the team ahead of the semi-finals?

The mindset is a good one. I think we felt relieved with Delhi Dynamos FC’s result against Mumbai City FC. I think we deserve to be here. We have been in the top four all throughout and now it is nice to get what we have worked so hard for. So, we deserve to be here and now on, its two games before the final. We have plenty of confidence to do very well.