Souvik Chakraborty has been brilliant for Delhi Dynamos FC in the 2015 Hero Indian Super League. The 23-year-old defensive midfielder has been at the heart of Delhi’s defence and passing game. With 192 good passes out of 233, 30 tackles and 24 clearances, he has given a good account of himself. The fact that Delhi have conceded just five goals is a big testimony to the player’s influence. Ahead of the Lions’ next game against defending champions Atlético de Kolkata on Thursday, Souvik spoke to indiansuperleague.com and discussed his and the team’s season at length. Here are the excerpts.Five matches in, and Delhi are in the top half of the table at fourth. Are you hopeful of staying there till the end?Yes, I’m quite hopeful of finishing & qualifying as our team is pretty good. We have a great coach and some big players. Our team unity is good. If we all can play well together then we can hope to be in the top 4.If you win the game against ATK, then you’ll be tied on points with FC Pune City. Your thoughts?It’s an away match. The crowd here turns up in large numbers. If we can win this it will be of great advantage to us. It will help us later on. We will give our 100% so that we can ensure a good result.Both ATK and DD are heading into this match after losing their previous game. In fact, ATK have had back-to-back losses. Would that serve as an added motivation for the teams to do well?Of course as we have lost the last match, and all of us would try and give even more than our 100% so that we can get a positive result. A win will help us increase our points and will help us qualify for the playoffs.How would you describe the experience of playing under Roberto Carlos?We have grown up seeing him play, seeing him gain a lot of success. So, to play under him and play with us as a marquee player-cum-coach is a huge thing. It’s like a dream come true for me.ATK at home is a tough prospect. Adding to the pressure is the huge crowd support they have. So what tactics will Delhi be using to break them down?Well tactics are made by the coach. ATK is quite a powerful and strong team. We will try and better them on the field to get a positive result. It’s a very strong team.Coming to your performance, the league stats show that you have the highest number of successful tackles along with Thoi Singh. So is there an effort on your part to concentrate on the defensive aspect of your game or is it the coach’s instructions you have been following?We are playing according to the coach’s instructions. I’m trying my best to help the team’s cause as much as possible. I don’t believe in personal stats. I’ll just continue doing whatever I can to help the team.
