It’s a record that might be tough to break anytime soon but Wim Raymaekers will go down in history as the scorer of the fastest goal in the Hero Indian Super League (ISL). Well, at least the first one! An academy product of Belgian football powerhouse Genk, the defender who now features for Delhi Dynamos FC has been rather impressive with his performances so far. Raymaekers talked exclusively to indiansuperleague.com on the sidelines after his team’s goalless draw versus the visiting NorthEast United FC.How do you think the team performed today?I think we did well. Everybody tried to do a nice job but we weren’t able to score today which was a little bit disappointing. The game could have gone either way. NorthEast United also had their opportunities but they too were unable to score. I think it was a fair result but we are a bit disappointed. In your opinion, who was the man of the match and why? If I look at our side, I think Kristof van Hout did a good job. Besides that, Bruno (Arias) and Hans (Mulder) were as usual very strong and they tried to hold on to the midfield and did well. Tactically, if you could change one thing about how the Dynamos played today, what would it be? It is difficult to say as we played our game and we got some chances so I think technically it was good. Also, our right back Aadil (Khan) did a good job considering it was his first time in that position. We have to build on this and progress further. The league is getting a lot more physical nowadays; do you enjoy that as a centre back? Yeah, there were some tough duels with the striker, No. 9, Mr. (James) Keene. He was talking a lot and using his body. We went hard on each other and it was fair. As long as everybody maintains fair play, it’s not a problem for me. Who is the toughest striker you have come across yet in the ISL? I have to say (Stiven) Mendoza last week was one of the hardest to play with. Even though he did not play the entire 90 minutes, he created an impression. That said, there are still many other strikers in the league who we are yet to play against. So we’ll see! Is there any particular teammate from whom you have learnt something new? Of course, we learn from everyone. It’s an honour to play with Alessandro (Del Piero). We talk a lot and he gives us advice which is interesting. What about Harm van Veldhoven? His philosophy as a coach? You can see our way of playing. We play differently as compared to the other teams. We need to progress a little more. So we must create chances and look to scoring more easily. I think there’s some work to be done there, but we have time. Most teams have two objectives: winning and winning well. Do you think you want to do both? We want to play our game with our philosophy. Last week, when we won 4-1, it was great. So we have to continue working and make progress. Besides winning the ISL, what else are you looking to gain out of this whole experience? Yes, it’s very unique to be part of the first ISL, to be performing with this new league. It’s an honour to play football in India. I’m enjoying it very much. The stadiums, the crowds, the games… I’ve enjoyed it all so far. I am looking forward to the next two months.
