Buoyant BFC face unpredictable Hyderabad FC

Bengaluru: Bengaluru FC face off against a depleted Hyderabad FC outfit in an ISL match at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium on Thursday.

BFC got their season off to a positive start with a good showing against East Bengal, and remained the only team to win at home in the opening round of fixtures.

The new signings who featured against EBFC - Edgar Mendes, Pedro Capo, Rahul Bheke, Alberto Noguera and Jorge Pererya Diaz - all looked sharp and hungry to contribute.

Head Coach Gerard Zaragoza and his Blue brigade will hope to see this continue, but the Spaniard remained conscious about complacency creeping into the ranks.

The head coach underscored the need to work on mistakes on Wednesday.

"That Hyderabad FC have not played any games in pre-season is a handicap for us. It’s not easy to prepare for this game, but we need to focus more on ourselves. The aim is to work on the mistakes we made against East Bengal.

"Tactics are always key. The last twenty minutes are crucial as we have seen so far in the League, and the aim will be to not concede in that time and stay proactive throughout every game we play," Zaragoza said.

Hyderabad FC have only one available foreigner for their season opener - winger Cy Goddard - leaving the charismatic Nizams manager Thangboi Singto pessimistic about his side's chances both against BFC and for the season overall.

It has been an all-change at Hyderabad, with new owners BC Jindal Group backing Singto and his youthful side to come good after promising showings towards the latter half of last season.

Despite strengthening their Indian spine with the signings of Lenny Rodrigues, Ayush Adhikari and Parag Shrivas over the summer, Hyderabad FC, owing to a transfer ban for unpaid salaries, have failed to adequately replace the caliber of their outgoing players such as Mohammed Yasir, Sahil Tavora, Nikhil Poojary and Chinglensana Singh.

The latter two were poached by Bengaluru FC, and have blended in seamlessly to the backline that worked well together to keep a clean sheet against East Bengal.

For a side that kept just five clean sheets in the league last season, the Blues have shown a marked improvement in their transitional play and decision making in the final third. The core of this stems from greater defensive stability. 

BFC can also rely on a stacked bench filled with Indian internationals to change the course of matches, something which Hyderabad FC do not have the luxury of utilising.

Zaragoza had hinted on the flexibility an all Indian defence affords, and Chinglensana pointed out that competition for places is a good thing. 

"It’s a good headache for the coach to have options and choices. We want to believe in ourselves. We have good Indians and foreigners in the squad," the 28-year-old said.

Zaragoza allayed fears of an injury to Vinith Venkatesh and revealed that Jorge Pereyra Diaz is fit to start after a 'small knock on the knee'.