Gerard Nus: We expect a lot from Federico Gallego this season

The Spaniard spoke about his team's preparations ahead of their season opener.

NorthEast United will face Mumbai City FC in their opening match of the season. With a new head coach and many new faces, the Highlanders look like a much changed side and would like to start the season on a winning note. Ahead of his first official match in-charge of the club, newly-appointed head coach Gerard Nus spoke to the media.

The Spaniard is wary of his opponents for Saturday. “Obviously, we know about the strength of this amazing team that they have assembled. They are one of the biggest investments not just in India, but in Asia at the moment. They are so powerful with the players that they have got (Adam) le Fondre, (Bartholomew) Ogbeche and so many others are amazing. The quality of Hugo (Boumous), (Ahmed) Jahouh and so on. We know about the strength that they have and we are going to need to be putting attention on ourselves."

"How we do things, how we build-up, how we create chances, how we become defensively well and organized and all the aspects of the football game. We know how good they are, we know the pressure that they have after the investment. It is not they have to win all games but also they have to do it by playing a nice way of football."

NorthEast United will be missing two players after they tested positive for COVID-19. The Highlanders’ coach spoke how much of an impact it will have on the team “Obviously, for me as I have said since Day 1, every player is important. Everyone matters and it’s not just something that we say, it’s something that I really mean. The players that we will not have, we won’t have a big loss and I hope they are going to do well and hopefully they will be soon with us. I keep in touch with them as much as I can.”

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Further, Gerard Nus also expressed that he is happy with the Indian contingent that he has at his disposal. “I am really happy with the Indian players that we have. We know it’s a young squad and many of them didn’t have any experience in this league. They played in one league below, but I have seen that they are very excited to do well. They take every training session with full passion and with great energy. I am really excited to be the head coach of this group of players. We keep improving everyday.”

The NorthEast United head coach also welcomed the decision to allow five substitutions in a match for the upcoming season. “I definitely think that it’s a great thing what they have done five substitutions. We all know how short has been the time for preparation in terms of weeks, it is not ideal. Everyone will be facing injuries and other setbacks and it is good to at least have the chance to put new players in to give a breather to the players. Definitely this is going to help. It will help in seeing more competitive matches. It will reduce the percentage of injuries and will raise the level of the passion for football that we are going to see.”

Moreover, Gerard Nus also emphasized on the importance of Uruguayan midfielder Federico Gallego to the team. “I think that Fede is an important player to the team and also for the club, not just because he has been here for three years but also because what he brings to the pitch for any team or any coach. We already saw how good he was, especially in the first season. We expect a lot from him this season as well. It is not only about his playing but also he is the one who welcomed all the foreigners. He tried to advice them and give them suggestions and opinions about what they are going to be facing.”

Lastly, the Spaniard also spoke about what it meant to be playing without fans inside the stadium. “It is not the way it is supposed to be and it is definitely not what we like. I am going to miss it myself. These football games, these football tournaments are for the people, for the fans and without them, the meaning is completely less. It is far from ideal.”