John Abraham is a gentleman who gives everything to the team: Juan Pedro Benali shares his thoughts after NorthEast United FC's Durand Cup 2024 triumph

Juan Pedro Benali opined that the national head coach, Manolo Márquez, will have a very tough job to choose the right players.

NorthEast United FC(NEUFC) won the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup in a thrilling final played at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan. They defeated 17-time champions of the Durand Cup, Mohun Bagan Super Giants, in the penalty shootout, winning their maiden Durand Cup title and their first-ever silverware in Indian football.

Mohun Bagan was the dominant side in the first half of the Durand Cup final, scoring two goals and controlling all areas, from defense to midfield to the attacking side, totally outclassing NEUFC. However, Juan Pedro Benali’s tactics shone in the second half.

Alaeddine Ajaraie and Guillermo Fernandez scored back-to-back goals, in the 55th and 55th minutes, respectively, taking the game to a penalty shootout, where Gurmeet Singh saved two penalties from Liston Colaco and Subhasish Bose, leading the team to their first major victory.

The head coach of NorthEast United FC, Juan Pedro Benali, shared his thoughts on the clash after full-time.

We are hungry

Juan Pedro Benali shared his gratitude to all in the press conference. Sharing the moments of the game, He said, “We do the game plan, we prepare all week for it. You know, the first half, I think we were all over the place. We were nervous. We didn’t do the game plan. Our game plan was very clear and very simple. We did it, we trained it. And in the second half, it happened. We came back, we put the team to win the game before the practice. This is exactly what happened.”

Further, he said, “We are really hungry. You know, we are a young team. Till today, we didn’t win absolutely anything. And the players, they deserve it. They worked very, very hard for this moment. You know, and this is the problem.”

“When you underestimate a team like us, you fail. And the players worked very, very hard. They beat themselves. You know, and the result came. I think everyone after the 2-0 in the first half thought it was finished. We are the wolves of the Northeast. We always go hunting. We are hungry. Till the last minute,” he added.

We always have a solution

Mohammed Ali Bemammer is one of the key players for NorthEast United FC. He suffered an injury and was substituted in the 30th minute of the match. In response to a question about the situation, Juan Pedro Benali said that his team had a solution for all scenarios.

“We have 26 players. In our training, in our video sessions, in talking, in preparing the players, we change positions for everyone. If something happens, we always have a solution. We have players who can play in very different positions. You know, fullbacks can play wingers, center-backs, midfielders, offensive players, defensive players,” said Juan Pedro Benali.

Explaining the situation in the midfield, he said, “At the beginning of the game, we were not in position. Sahal(Abdul Samad), (Jason)Cummings, and Greg Stewart were causing us difficulty on the back of our defenders. And the midfielders, they didn’t follow a little bit. We suffered from there, but we corrected it in the second half. The midfielders took them, and it was no longer a problem. We went to press higher. We pressed a 3-3, and we won the ball. And we could dominate the game.”

In response to a question about rotating three goalkeepers, Benali replied that he needed all three goalkeepers to be ready to play. “You know, we need everybody to be prepared for the next game,” he commented.

John Abraham

In response to a question about the contribution of the owner John Abraham to the team, Juan Pedro Benali shared his gratitude to John Abraham for bringing him to the club. He further elaborated, “Thank you for bringing me here. Thank you for making this fantastic team. Thank you for suffering. Thank you for crying. You know, he deserves it, he’s a gentleman who gives everything to the team, everything to the club. And he knows that he represents a big, big region, a fantastic region of football. Everybody must be proud of him. And sincerely, I’m proud to have a boss like him.”

Player development

Coach Juan Pedro Benali, in response to a question from Khel Now, regarding Jithin M.S.‘s progress, said, “Yesterday, I had a question. They asked me, we’re not afraid of a team like Mohun Bagan, who are buying all the fantastic players, the great players, spending all the money. My answer was, we take a player, we make a player, and Mohun Bagan comes to buy that player.”

“You know, we are a team, we are a club that develops; we are a club, we know who we are. You know, we have our feet on the ground. This win will not make us crazy. We’re still fighting game by game. You know, we’re not Manchester City, we’re not Real Madrid. That’s important.”

Talking about Jithin, he said, “Jithin deserved it. Jithin worked very, very hard. The players and all the teammates supported him a lot. The moment that everyone, everyone was insulting him, everyone was criticizing him, everyone was against him.

“Every message I was receiving said, take out Jithin, Jithin should not play, Jithin should go out from NorthEast. He’s the first player out. We trusted him, he worked very hard, and he deserved to be the best player in the tournament. Congratulations.”

Manolo’s player selections

Replying to a question about the possibility of Parthib Gogoi‘s selection for the national team, Juan Pedro Benali shared his opinion on Manolo Márquez, the new head coach of Indian football. He said, “I think Manolo is a smart coach. Very, very good coach. He knows all the players. He’s looking at everyone. And of course, he cannot just come in like an elephant in a porcelain shop, just clean everything and bring new ones and everything. He’s doing a great job.”

“I think, slowly, slowly, he will start to try many players, including Parthib, I think. One of them, Parthib, Jithin. We have many, many players now coming up, and I’m sure Manolo will have a very tough job to do to choose the right players,” he signed off.

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