We tried to give every player game time, says NorthEast United coach Juan Pedro Benali after Durand Cup semi-final win

The Highlanders are one step away from their maiden trophy.

For the first time since its formation, NorthEast United FC, the Guwahati-based only Indian Super League(ISL) club from the country’s northeast region, has entered the final of a competition. On Monday, 26th August, they defeated the local favorites, Shillong Lajong FC (SLFC) from Meghalaya, in the first semi-final of the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Shillong.

Thoi Singh and Moroccan striker Alaeddine Ajaraie scored the first two goals in the first half, while substitute Parthib Gogoi scored the final goal in added time, helping the Highlanders to enter their first-ever final.

Juan Pedro Benali, the head coach of NorthEast United FC, expressed his thoughts after the semi-final match against Shillong Lajong FC in a post-match press conference at the JN stadium.

Anyone can surprise you

Sharing his thoughts on the opponent, Shillong Lajong FC, head coach of NorthEast United FC, Juan Pedro Benali said, “We were playing against a very nice team, very fast, with quality players. We’ve watched them many times, and we knew they would make it difficult for us. But our experience and the players were very, very good. We knew what we were playing for, and we did our job.”

The Highlanders have defeated Bodoland FC, BSF FT, and a young side from Odisha FC in their group stages. In the quarterfinal, they defeated Indian Army FT to reach the semi-final.

When asked if Shillong Lajong was the toughest opponent they had met, head coach Benali responded, “This is what always happens when you underestimate the opponent. Anyone can surprise you.”

“We played against very good teams. Even Odisha’s reserve team was very strong. Shillong Lajong was very strong. The Indian Army was very strong. Bodoland FC was a fantastic team. We played against good teams, and you can see the Indian Army FT defeated Jamshedpur FC, and Shillong Lajong beat East Bengal.

“There is no small team when you’re playing. It’s 11 v 11, and with all respect, they are a very good team. We’re in the final thanks to the five games, not only this one. If we didn’t win the other games, we couldn’t have reached the semi-final,” said Juan Pedro Benali.

“Every goal arrives at the right time. There’s no goal arriving at the wrong time. The timing was perfect. When you start winning, it’s important. You put on the pressure, and we know that Shillong Lajong is a team that likes to play counter-attack, wins the ball, and runs forward a lot. If we score first, they will open up completely, and that’s what happened,” said Benali.

“When the team is solid defensively, it’s not only about the defense. Everybody is working hard, pressing, coming together, helping each other. That’s important. Many times, I read the comments and see, ‘Oh, the defense is not good.’ It’s not just the defense.

“Everyone is doing their job. It’s like an attack. If the defenders are not good with the ball and they’re not giving options to the players in the middle and upfront, we cannot attack,” Benali said when asked about the tremendous performance of the defense.

Everybody Deserves to Play: Juan Pedro Benali

It was quite a surprise when the top scorer for the club, Guillermo Fernández, was not in the first team. Additionally, Thoi Singh started in the first eleven for the first time this season. In a question from Khel Now regarding the change in the forward line, Benali informed the media that Guillermo was sick. “Guillermo was sick the last three days. He was very weak, and we didn’t want to gamble with him.”

Further, he said, “It is pre-season. We tried to give time to every player. Second, we knew that we had a great striker, and any one of the players could do the job. And this is what happened. Thoi was doing very, very well in the last two games. I think he deserves to play today. And I think all the players have been working very, very hard since we started. Everybody deserves to play, even the players who stayed in Guwahati.”

“Always before the game, you prepare in your head, you prepare your papers, and things during training. But this is the beauty of football. A lot of things happen. Sometimes you prepare 1-2-3, and when the game starts, it’s 4-5-6, and you need to change the plan during the game. Maybe you thought, ‘I can change this player and put in another player,’ or we’ll play a certain way. And during the game, you need to change because the other team or some players get tired, or the situation of the game changes. This is the beauty of football. A lot of things happen in the game,” said Juan Pedro Benali.

“It was important for us that all the goalkeepers play, that all the players have minutes to start the ISL as best as we can,” he responded when asked about his tactics of rotating goalkeepers.

Durand Cup Is the Best Place to Get Competition

Head coach Juan Pedro Benali expressed that the Durand Cup is one of the best places to get competition, instead of friendly matches. He said, “Each coach has his ideas. For myself, I think the Durand Cup is the best place to get competition to prepare yourself for the ISL. A friendly game doesn’t give competition. A friendly game doesn’t prepare the player mentally or put him under stress. Even if you come to see our training, we try to put stress on the players. When the game comes, it’s easier.”

“I think the Durand Cup is fantastic. But this is football. Each coach thinks differently. If there are 150 million people watching football today, there are a million coaches. Each one thinks differently,” Juan Pedro Benali said.

Both Are Strong Teams

Defending champions Mohun Bagan Super Giant will lock horns with former champions Bengaluru FC in the second semi-final of the 133rd IndianOil Durand Cup, which will be played on 27th August at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Krirangan from 5:30 PM onwards.

When asked who the NorthEast United side would rather face in the finals, Juan Pedro Benali responded that both clubs are big teams. “I don’t care. Both are good teams; both are big teams. I don’t care. Tomorrow we’ll think about the final. Both coaches are my friends. Both teams are very strong. We know them very well, and they know us very well. It will be a great final.”

Nestor Sacrificed Himself for the Team

Néstor Albiach played a different role compared to last season. Juan Pedro Benali, responding to a question from Khel Now about Nestor’s current role in the team, said that Nestor’s role is an offensive midfielder. “Nestor was always playing as an 8 or 10. Last season, we lacked strikers due to injuries and other reasons. That’s why we changed his role.”

“He got criticized a lot because people thought he was a striker. But he’s not. He’s not a striker. He scores, but he’s a great player, and we thank him for all the work he did last year for the team. He sacrificed himself for the team, and that’s important. But Nestor is not a striker,” he added.

We Need to Choose the Right Player for the Right Moment, for the Right Game

Juan Pedro Benali, when asked about the squad he prefers for the final, commented, “I have 28 players. I expect everything from them. They need to work. We don’t think when a player scores a goal, it means he’s going to play the next game. A player who doesn’t score a goal doesn’t mean he’s not going to play the next game. We don’t know. It depends on how we train. It depends on how we work. It depends on the strategy. we’re using for the other team.”

Further, he said, “It depends on who we’re playing. Sometimes a player looks at himself alone. We look at everything. Sometimes a player comes and says, ‘Oh, I worked very well.’ Yes, you worked very well, but others also worked very well. We need to choose the right player for the right moment, for the right game. It’s like we say all the time: you cannot eat soup with a fork. Every day is different.”

If They Don’t Understand, It’s Not Their Mistake, It’s Mine

The Highlanders have a very diverse environment with players speaking different languages. When asked by Khel Now how the coach communicates with all the players, he said that he doesn’t start the training until everybody understands.

He said, “We are a family. Everybody understands. I think this is the beauty of it. I think you can see it in all the players and staff. Everybody’s helping. We don’t start any training if someone has a doubt. We try to use a lot of images, even in training, so that everyone understands. If they don’t understand, it’s not their mistake.

We hope to play here. We’re pushing hard to play ISL here also.

The entire state of Meghalaya was on hold from the afternoon until the end of the match. The atmosphere mesmerized everyone. Reacting to the crowd, Juan Pedro Benali shared his gratitude to the people.

Cracking atmosphere at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on the eve of the North East Derby🔊🆙#IndianFootball #Shillong #NorthEastUnitedFC #ShillongLajong pic.twitter.com/ta7wDUuJaI

— Khel Now (@KhelNow) August 26, 2024

“We were North East, we were brothers, you know. There were, I think, many, many, many fans today. As I said yesterday, they were hard to divide in two. When we attacked, they were happy. When they attacked, they were happy. It was a nice day; the fans today were amazing. This is the football we want to see in India. We hope to play here. We’re pushing hard to play ISL here also,” appreciating the passionate Shillong crowd.

“I’ve been a professional coach in the elite since 1998. Some of them were not born, maybe. I’ve played in front of a lot of crowds. It’s the opposite. It makes me happy. It makes us work more. As I said yesterday, the crowd is fantastic. It’s a circus. We’re the clowns.

“They are shouting, and the more they shout, the better we are, the better we do. The problem sometimes when you’re playing at home and you have a lot of crowds is that if you’re not doing well, the pressure is on you. For us, it’s fantastic. We hope all the games we go anywhere will be like this. Great game, great crowd, and we hope to come to Shillong to play again.” Benali mentioned, responding to a question about playing in front of the passionate crowd in Shillong.

Coach Juan Pedro Benali concluded by stating that the reason for Phalguni Singh not being in the squad was because of his illness.

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