Change in mentality reason for success: Hyderabad FC co-owner Varun
Hyderabad: Hyderabad Football Club are on a roll in the ongoing Indian Super League. The team from Hyderabad became the first to qualify for the knockouts when they defeated Kerala Blasters 2-1 in their previous Game. Having missed the knockouts by a whisker last season, the Manolo Marquez coached Hyderabad recorded 10 wins from 18 […]
Hyderabad: Hyderabad Football Club are on a roll in the ongoing Indian Super League. The team from Hyderabad became the first to qualify for the knockouts when they defeated Kerala Blasters 2-1 in their previous Game.
Having missed the knockouts by a whisker last season, the Manolo Marquez coached Hyderabad recorded 10 wins from 18 games to amass 35 points to occupy top spot in the table.
Hyderabad FC co-owner Varun Tripuraneni is over the moon with the team’s performance and credited the success to change in mentality this year.
Speaking on team’s success, Varun said, “It is a great feeling to see quality with two games left. When it came to recruiting, we had clarity on what sort of players we would require. We learnt from the last two seasons where we made mistakes and identified the areas to improve. We understood the gaps and we plugged them this season. We were also able to convert the chances and close the games well this season and that has been the major turnaround.”
Lauding the team’s efforts, Varun added, “The mentality is the biggest change this season. Last season, we were not clinical enough in finishing games. We held on to narrow leads and finished the games well this season. The games against Bengaluru, Kerala were extremely close and we finished well. (Bartholomew) Ogbeche has been scoring goals for fun. We played well as a team, not just in one department, all players contributed to the team’s success. Our goalkeeper (Laxmikant) Kattimani has been the unsung hero of the team.”
He further revealed that staying in bubble for so long helped strengthen the camaraderie in the team and that helped them express themselves on the pitch. “The strength of the team was the camaraderie and bonding in the team that kept them going. We have a good channel of communication between management and coaching staff right from the beginning.”
He also had a lot of praise for Indian talent that proved decisive. “When Manolo took charge last year, there were many Indian players who played very few games. Akash Mishra made debut last year, Ashish Roy didn’t play many games. Hitesh was hardly playing any games. Now he has become a prominent player. They grew as players with the team and under Manolo. We strengthened wherever it was required. With foreign recruits, it was important to have the right balance. We wanted to know who would give that balance. We had great players like Aridane last season. We now have Ogbeche who is like him and is a great role model. Joao Victor is the pillar for the team and leader in the squad. It is a great mix of youth and experience.”
Varun is also confident that the team has bright chances of winning the League Cup and the Championship. “We have two more games. I think we have a great chance to win the league. The way we are playing, we stand a good chance. Once we enter the playoffs, we believe we can beat our opponents. Our confidence level is very high. We take one match at a time. We believe this could be our year.”
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