Depleted North East wary of Jamshedpur

NORTH EAST UNITED’S PORTUGUESE COACH PERES DE DEUS IS HOPEFUL BORGES WILL MAKE THE PLAYING XI.

GUWAHATI: North East United FC may take the field for their first match of the Indian Super League (ISL) 2017 versus new franchise Jamshedpur FC on Saturday without midfielder Rowllin Borges, who is nursing a knee injury.

North East United’s Portuguesecoach Joao CarlosPeresde Deus is hopefulBorges willmake the playing XI, but team captain Robert Lalthlamuana feels his absence will not dim the fire his boys have to challenge Jamshedpur, a team formed largely by players from Kerala FC and Atletico de Kolkata.

“We are a mix of young Indian players and experienced overseas players and we are up against a new team that has some good players. More than individual excellence, we’re backing out team game,” Lalthlamuana said ahead of the match.

De Deus did not specify whether Borges will be able to play onSaturday. “Wewillknow on the field,” he said, adding the team has able replacements.

ThePortuguese wasconfident the side will play well. “I can’t promise victories, but I can help provide a good season for the fans, players, club and me.”

StephenJames Coppell,coach of the Tata Steel-owned Jamshedpur FC, said the first match will be the most difficult because “I have no background information as a team. We’re preparing in a dark area, and I presume they are too. From the experience of last year, this should be a tough game,” said the former England player.

Coppell attributed some of the “darkness” to the chopping and changing of players and coaches by the teams in the last three seasons.