In his second Hero Indian Super League (ISL) stint with NorthEast United FC, right-back Nirmal Chettri is an essential cog in the Highlanders’ defensive set-up. Having been re-signed by the NEUFC management this year, his solid defending and dangerous crossing ability will be a plus for the Highlanders as they look to reach their first semi-finals in Hero ISL history. On the eve of NorthEast’s first away fixture of the campaign against Chennaiyin FC, indiansuperleague.com caught up with Chettri and spoke about his expectations for the season. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

How did it feel after being re-signed by NEUFC?

I am so happy to be back. First of all, I want to thank John Abraham and the club management for believing in me and bringing me back to the club.

What positives do you take from your last match against debutants, Jamshedpur FC?

It’s all about the result at the end. But we were happy with our performance. There are many things to do and many things to work on. On a positive note, we are happy with the overall performance but still, we need to take our chances and convert them, and I am sure that our strikers will do that in the next game.

Chennai have never beaten NorthEast in Chennai, so how do you rate your team’s chances against Chennaiyin FC on Thursday?

It’s always nice to talk about the past, but we live in the present. It’s a new team. Both the teams are new. The coaches have different tactics, their plans are different. We are happy with the past, but the next game will be different. Hopefully, we do better and continue the good form.

Have you set any personal objectives for this season?

Definitely. We will take it match by match. We want to make it to the semi-finals and definitely want to win the league.

Any message for the fans of NEUFC?

They have been so good. They stayed with us even through the ups and downs. I hope the fans will stick with us throughout the season and keep supporting us like always.