Bengaluru will play their first home match of 2019 when they entertain NorthEast United FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday. The Blues lost their unbeaten streak in Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2018-19 after they were beaten by Mumbai City FC on Sunday. Bengaluru will be on the lookout for redemption, however, given NorthEast’s impressive form this season, the hosts will have to work their socks off for a positive result.

Head coach of Bengaluru FC, Carles Cuadrat was present at the pre-match conference to answer questions from the media. The Spaniard began by expressing how delighted he was to play in front of his home fans for the first time this year. “We are very happy to play our first game at home. It will be nice to be in front of our supporters one more time. We will try to make a good show of it once again,” he said.

Despite losing their unbeaten streak against Mumbai City, Cuadrat stressed that a spot in the playoffs remains the team’s primary objective. “It is always nice to talk about unbeaten records. But we have to be realistic - we are fighting for the title. We are only working to reach the playoffs now. I think we played a good game in Mumbai but we could not score,” he said.

Talking about opponents NorthEast United, Cuadrat said, “They are a tough team. They are having a good campaign. They also want to make the playoffs, so for them it is very important to come here and get three points. It will be a nice game for the supporters.”

One worrisome aspect for Bengaluru will be in their striking department. With Miku out injured, the onus is on Sunil Chhetri and Udanta Singh to come up with the goods. However, the pair were not up to the mark against Mumbai and when asked about their form, Cuadrat answered, “We all saw that in the last game Sunil and Udanta were not in a fresh state. But I think it is normal in football. They will take a while to be 100% ready.”

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