Stephen Pearson made his first appearance in the Hero Indian Super League since the inaugural edition as he came on at the start of the second half during Atlético de Kolkata's 1-1 draw against Mumbai City FC at the Mumbai Football Arena on Tuesday. It was Pearson's first 2016 Hero ISL appearance in ATK colours and the Scotsman nearly capped it off in memorable fashion with a late winner three minutes from full-time. The 34-year-old spoke to indiansuperleague.com shortly after the game and shared his assessment of the match. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

Unbeaten in the league so far, how is the team shaping up?

I think we are shaping up well. We have got a win and two draws. We had a difficult game today against a good Mumbai City FC side. First half, we were out of the race but we responded in the second half and probably should have won it then.

You played some attacking football today and missed a couple of chances. Do you think you could have had a better result today?

Yes, on another day we could have won it. We had many opportunities in the second half but we didn't quite do as well as we should have. But we did show good character coming back from a goal down against a good side and I think we should have won it.

It was quite a physical game today, lots of injuries and tackles flying in. Did you guys expect that?

It is part and parcel of the game. Obviously Mumbai City FC players are fighting for the ball as we are. It is a physical game, so this side of the game I don't mind. You've got to match up to it to win games.

What are your thoughts on the next game, any special plans?

To recover from the today's game. Then travel home and prepare for the next game.