Last season’s finalists Bengaluru FC kick-start their 2018-19 campaign of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) against Southern counterparts Chennaiyin FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday. With Albert Roca’s departure in the summer, his compatriot Carles Cuadrat has been handed the responsibility of managing the club.

The Blues enter the season with renewed expectations after enduring a heartbreak in 2017-18, where they lost the final against the same foes they face in their opening match. Cuadrat, however, stressed in the pre-match conference while taking questions from the media that what happened in the past was unimportant. “It’s the opening game of the season and it means there are a lot of expectations. We are ready for it. We understand that with Chennaiyin FC, maybe, it’s an emotional game as we lost the finals to them last season. But for us, that’s going to be the least of our concerns. So, the competition is more important. But we are going to try to play the best game possible.”

Talking about his opponent, the Spaniard expects John Gregory’s men to defend robustly and try and stifle the attacking threat from his team. “I think, they will come here to defend. They feel strong mentally because they are the champions. They know that they have been winning these two games. They will try to wait for us and try and play counter-attacking football. We understand the situation and we have been working to try and win. We will try and play to our strengths.”

Bengaluru have added some quality players to their ranks this year and Cuadrat expects the new recruits to impress the fans when they take to the pitch for the first time. “You are in a lot of competition and you need players to better the situation. The new signings want to show to the supporters how they can help the team. They are motivated and want to show the supporters how they can get it.”