NorthEast United FC begin their 2018-19 season of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) with a home encounter against FC Goa at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Monday. New head coach Eelco Schattorie will be hoping to get off to a good start with his new-look team and create history at the end of the season by entering the playoffs for the first time ever. On Sunday, the Dutch manager was present at the pre-match press conference to take questions from the media.

Speaking on his opponents, Schattorie was confident about his team’s prospects, but also shed light on what advantage Goa hold over them. “Last season, I had a chance of playing FC Goa twice. Both games we got a result - one win, one draw. They were based on a certain weakness that I saw in that team and hopefully, we can exploit that tomorrow. Having said that, we have almost a 70-80% new team and we will have to get used to my way of working and my strategy. Goa looks more set. They mostly have the same team, they have the same coach and not many changes in the team. So, that will surely play as an advantage for them. But, I know where their weaknesses are and I hope we can exploit them.”

The 46-year-old went on to state his intentions for the new season and what he would want to change from last time. “Last season, I was not in control of the team. I was part of the team, but the decisions were made by Avram Grant and we basically did that together. The new season started, but my appointment was very late. It was at the last moment. The only thing I will like to do or want to do is prepare my players as well as possible for the upcoming game.”

When asked about the team’s problems in front of goal, which was blatant last season, Schattorie pointed out the abilities of new signing Bartholomew Ogbeche, who looks set to play a pivotal role this campaign. “We have Ogbeche, who last season played at the highest level in Holland (Netherlands) and scored some promising goals. Hopefully, that will also give us good returns here in India. But, of course, any player who comes to India will need to adjust to the weather, food and environment. So, hopefully, he can adjust quickly and give us a lot of goals.”

Before signing off, Schattorie provided an injury update, stating that most of his players were available for the game. “We had a few injuries in the pre-season. Everyone at the moment is fit, but that doesn’t mean everyone has fully gained fitness. But, overall, we have all the players available for the team and the games.”

Read the match preview here.