Kerala Blasters FC visit the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata to take on old foes and defending champions ATK in Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 on Thursday. Last year’s finalists are on a good run of form having won both their previous fixtures and will look to pick up a maiden win in Kolkata to reach the top four and stay in contention for the playoffs.

The visitors head coach David James addressed the media during the pre-match press conference and revealed what brought in a change of form for Kerala. “I have been watching Kerala as a fan from around the world,” he began. “There was a lot of talent in there and I was genuinely surprised that they weren’t higher up in the table. What I have done is brought in coaches and we just allow the players to be their best. This is a very talented squad. Give them the right environment and they can flourish. I am very fortunate to have such good players, not just talent-wise, but also thoroughly enthusiastic to get on and do well.”

He further elaborated, “When I came in, we weren’t in a great position. Two wins to start with was nice, then two defeats were not so nice. It had left us with a simple challenge - six wins in six games to give us a chance of qualifying. We can’t afford to think about anything now except wins.”

Asked whether this was a good time to face ATK, given their indifferent form, the 47-year-old replied, “Kolkata, NorthEast, Chennai and Bengaluru are all going to face the same prospect as far as we are concerned, and that is to win a game of football. It is probably a good time to play ATK because we are in a better place than them.”

Iconic Bulgarian Dimitar Berbatov has not been seen on the pitch for a while for Kerala and the former Liverpool custodian shed light on the issue. “When I arrived at the club, his (Berbatov’s) physical state wasn’t as good as he wanted it to be,” James revealed. “There were a few injuries, and he broke down in two or three matches. It was important to the side that he got himself fit. He’s back in full training now.”

However, the Englishman also pointed out the other ways in which the former Manchester United star was helping out the team. “He is one of the leaders around the changing room,” he said. “Very inspirational to the players. As a head coach, you do not want to be the one making all the decisions regarding how you improve a player. You do like your experienced players to share their knowledge and what Berbatov has been doing is fantastic. So maybe, he is not talked about much because he has not played many games, but he is getting himself back to the match fitness that we need. He will feature at some point in the upcoming games.”