It means two and half years more of suffering: Ivan Vukomanovic on implication of VAR

Vukomanovic says Hyderabad FC is one one their most difficult opponents.

The Indian Super League (ISL) resumes after a three week break due to the international window. It will be a double header Sunday with Kerala Blasters hosting Hyderabad FC in the second game of the day.

The Blasters come into this game after a win against East Bengal while Hyderabad FC held Punjab FC to a 1-1 draw. Ahead of the game, Kerala Blasters’ head coach Ivan Vukomanovic and player Daisuke Sakai addressed the media.

Thoughts on Hyderabad FC

Speaking about Hyderabad FC, Ivan said that they are one of the most difficult oppositions to play against.

“In the previous two years for us, one of the most difficult opponents and games against Hyderabad were always the toughest. It’s a very good team. Very good individuals. Also, it was our opponent we lost to in the finals. 

He also added that rankings on the table say nothing because anybody can defeat anybody.

“So actually, it doesn’t matter now seeing the ranking, where we are, where they are, doesn’t say nothing. In this league, anything’s possible and anybody can beat anybody. If tomorrow we want to win we must be on top of our possibilities, we must play with the full 100% and be very careful,” he asserted.

International break

The head coach also shared his thoughts on how the international break helped his team. He said that this break gave everyone the time to recharge themselves.

“Since we started our preseason we have had to deal with many things. One of the most important things in a coaching job is to always plan certain things in advance as a coaching staff, your blend of all cycles, period of one month, two months, everything we have already.

“So now we use this period, especially to work on different levels, especially when players who arrived after injury and of course, we get this gap of a couple of days off, everybody went to recharge batteries with families, you know, it was needed,” he added.

Players returning from injury

Ivan also spoke about his players returning from injury. He said that he is happy to see his players return to training.

“Well, we are very happy to see that now players are being available, especially speaking about the defensive line, which is the crucial part of your team in your house. It’s like the concrete part of any project. So now three players coming back speaking about Drincic, Leskovic and Prabir Das, all of them are now available for us.

He also added that it is a luxurious problem to have because he wants to give playing time to all his players.

“It’s kind of a luxury problem, and who to put in the starting 11. Of course, we always think about the long term. And when you have these games on short term. You always think about rotations as well. We always want to give everybody playing time,” he stated.

VAR 

Ivan Vukomanovic was quizzed about his thoughts on VAR coming to India. He said that until it arrives there will be suffering and frustration and it should arrive as soon as possible.

“I saw the information about VAR technology that will arrive in two and a half years. So it means again, two and a half years more of suffering and frustrations and hoping that the improvement will be there. But I think that seeing the fact that these technologies are already present in worldwide football for more than 6-7 years, it should be fast. But, it’s not up to us and it’s up to the federation.”

Team News 

The head coach shared an update on his team and said that apart from three injured players all other players are available for selection.

“The only issue now we have is about Joshua Sotiria, who is recovering from surgery. Jeakson was operated on in October and is now in full recovery following the plan, and things are alright so far. But we will wait for him to be back on the pitch. Freddy got in an accident, he got surgeries. He’s recovering now. So you’ll still have to wait, see how that evolves. All the other guys, they are available now.” he quipped.

Daisuke’s Comments 

Thoughts on his performance and the league

The Japanese player was asked if he was happy with his performances and also about the ISL. He said, “Yes, my performances are coming step by step. I want to score more and provide more assists for the team. I feel the intensity is high and the quality is huge here in India,”

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