Bengaluru FC take on FC Pune City in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium in Pune on Thursday. Erik Paartalu has been instrumental for the Blues in his pivotal midfield role, from where he has managed three goals and an assist so far. Speaking to indiansuperleague.com before the game against Pune, the Australian underlined the need for a good pre-season. Here are the excerpts.

How challenging was it to settle down with your new teammates?

It was pretty easy to be honest. We started the pre-season quite early. We went to Spain and had a good 2-3 weeks there with each other. It’s always challenging when you have a new team together. But I think the way we started the season, I think it kind of reflects the pre-season we had together. Certainly, with the AFC Cup games, learning to win and to lose and playing together longer than most of the teams (in the Hero ISL) has been quite positive for us. So it hasn’t been challenging at all.

What do you find unique in your team that sets it apart?

I think with this team it’s the expectation. Certainly not the expectation in a bad way from the fans or the club that expects you to win something but from ourselves, we expect the best. I suppose the expectation among the players is very strong and I hope that continues.

Assign the following tags to your teammates:

The Prankster – John Johnson

The Serious One – Dimas Delgado

The Foodie – Toni Dovale

Having visited various cities across the country, have you had any unique experiences?

Well, you know what it’s like for a footballer, you’re confined to (just being) a footballer a lot of the time. But, I’ve been to Goa a couple of times already. I’m actually going back there for the Christmas break. I really enjoy the feeling in Goa, it’s really relaxed along the beach. So it’s kind of close to what I feel comfortable with being Australian and the food is amazing.

You’ve already scored three and set up one playing in a deep lying position, do you see yourself playing in a more advanced role?

I’m just happy to help the team in whatever way I can. The goals have come through set-pieces. It would be nice to get a goal from open play, that would be a target for me the next couple of weeks. I’m naturally a defensive midfielder, so if I play well and get three points for the team, I’m much happier than scoring a goal and getting an assist and losing to Goa. For me it’s about doing my job at Bengaluru and hopefully I can add a few more goals and help the team out.