Delhi Dynamos defender Anwar Ali has been one of the standout performers for his side in the Hero Indian Super League. The Punjabi centre back has played in every game for Delhi, and has been a crucial part of a Delhi defence which has conceded the fewest goals in the league. They achieved another clean sheet against Kerala Blasters FC in Kochi, weathering extensive Kerala pressure for large spells during the game.The performance by Ali and his comrades earned a priceless point in a tough away fixture, but the defender felt his side could have won the game given the chances they had. However, the result ended a losing run for Delhi, after two successive defeats.Ali related to indiansuperleague.com in an exclusive post-match interview how head coach Harm van Veldhoven had stressed the need for the Delhi defenders to keep their concentration for the entire 90 minutes, after conceding late goals in their two losses. The experienced centre back, who has earned 31 caps for the Indian national team, shared his thoughts on the game in Kochi:It was an action-packed game. How do you feel about the result?I think they came with the right attitude to play. They got a lot of chances, and so did we, but we just didn’t convert them.Where do you think this game was won and lost?I think the defences of both teams did very well today. They did well to stop all the chances for our strikers."I like the way the whole team is performing."Anwar AliThere were two strong strikers, Iain Hume and Andrew Barisic, how did you feel about their physicality?I could cope well with the physicality, but they played a running, pacey game, rather than a physical one.What did the coach tell you at half-time?We’ve lost the last two games, and the coach told us we tend to lose our concentration towards the end of the match and lose the match. So he told us it was very important to keep our concentration.How did you like your overall performance?I like the way I’m performing. I like the way the whole team is performing!What was Kerala’s weakness that you thought you could exploit before the match?Just like what our team is going through – we’re finding it difficult to score goals, and we know Kerala is going through the same thing.
