FC Pune City can go second in the standings with a win against NorthEast United FC in their 2016 Hero Indian Super League encounter at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday. The Stallions head into the contest on the back of a thrilling 4-3 win against Delhi Dynamos FC, which propelled them to the top 4.Pune head coach, Antonio Habas, however, was quick to underline that NorthEast will be a very different proposition as compared to Delhi come kick-off on Tuesday. “Tomorrow's match will be very different from the Delhi match. We played well against Delhi and we saw more effort from the team but tomorrow we expect a very tough match. It’s a different match tomorrow,” Habas told reporters at the pre-match press conference in Guwahati.After a slow start to the season, Antonio Habas’ men have gone onto register three wins in their last four matches. The 59-year-old believes his players taking time to familiarise themselves with their teammates along with his four-match suspension at the start of the league were a few of the reasons behind their lacklustre start. “New city, new team, new coach and as you know 90 percent of the team was new. Also [the] coach was suspended for four games and a lot was happening in the beginning. The team is working very well and enjoying [themselves now] and all the players are more comfortable,” he said.The Highlanders head into the contest winless in their last six games, including four defeats sandwiched between 1-1 draws against Delhi Dynamos FC and Atlético de Kolkata respectively. When asked if NorthEast’s poor form will play into his side’s hands, the Spaniard said: ”You all know in the beginning NorthEast was playing very well and was on top. They were playing very fast and we respect everyone. We have said to our players that NorthEast is one of the best teams in ISL so we think tomorrow is going to be very, very difficult. They have good players, good fans and we think this match is going to be really tough for us.”Having been a part of the Hero ISL since the inaugural edition of the league, Habas has seen the standard of Indian football grow from close quarters and thinks that more can be expected of domestic talents in the years to come. “We understand that in the beginning Indian football needs good players and very good international players and now after three years I have nearly 44 games in the ISL and it's true we need more Indian players in the squad. The level of Indian players in the last two years has increased a lot and we are really happy with our Indian players,” Habas said.He added: “So, from next year onwards we expect to have more Indian players. And this batch of Indian players and international players has helped Indian players grow and improve their performance. So, I think in the next one or two years we will see more Indian players and less international players.”
