NorthEast United FC head coach Nelo Vingada says his team will leave no stone unturned when they take on high-flying Delhi Dynamos FC in their 2016 Hero Indian Super League encounter at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday. The Highlanders, who are presently fifth in the table with 15 points from 12 games, will do their semis chances a world of good if they can take maximum points against the Lions tomorrow.“We are considering tomorrow’s match as the most important one. A lot also depends on the result today [ATK vs Kerala Blasters FC, both on 18 points from 12 games]. They are also fighting for the spot that we want, so we have today’s match to look forward to, besides keeping in mind that tomorrow’s game is going to be most important for us,” Vingada told reporters ahead of the match.He continued: “It’s going to be like a final. So far we have kept ourselves alive and we need to continue keeping ourselves alive. I hope when we play in Kochi [against Kerala Blasters FC in the Highlanders’ last league-stage game], we are still in it. Let’s see what happens today and tomorrow but we can’t say anything [as of now]. We can, however, say it’s going to be difficult because there are two games and one target for both teams, so we will just have to wait.“Our team has come back in form since the last three games but even then I wasn’t happy when we played against Kolkata because we conceded the goal in the last minute. We won against Pune even though it wasn’t a great game, and against Chennai we made some interesting moves. We showed our heart and that how badly we wanted to stay and fight for our position.“…We need a minimum of 18 points to qualify but we want more than that because Kolkata and Kerala are at 18 points and we play Kerala in Kochi. We will just have to wait for today and tomorrow’s games to see what happens, we still do have a chance.”Vingada also informed his goalkeeper Subrata Paul and defender Gustavo Lazzaretti won’t feature in the match on account of injury. “Subrata and Gustavo won’t be able to make it, so we’ll have to choose a good side and we will, because our players are highly qualified. They’ll make a good game and score a lot of goals and the things that they have done of late… it is not a surprise for me,” the 63-year-old Portuguese said.(Please note that following Atlético de Kolkata’s 1-1 draw at home against Kerala Blasters FC on Tuesday, Delhi Dynamos FC also qualify for the semi-finals. Mumbai City FC, ATK and Delhi are the three teams to have qualified as of now. FC Pune City and defending Chennaiyin FC are out of contention, leaving Kerala Blasters FC and NorthEast United FC in a tussle for the remaining spot in the semis.)
