NorthEast United FC head-coach Nelo Vingada has asked his side to follow the footsteps of Premier League champions Leicester City.
NorthEast United have performed beyond expectations in the Indian Super League this season and find themselves in second position in the league. Much has been spoken about the impact of their new head-coach Nelo Vingada and his pragmatic approach taken towards games.
In the tournament’s opener, he played his cards perfectly and manage to muster a narrow win over Season 1 finalists Kerala Blasters. A solid victory against the runners-up of the following campaign, capped off a solid home start for the Highlanders.
However, his side came up short against Mumbai City FC who have made a pulsating start to Season 3. Despite the result, the coach took away the positives and called it his side’s best performance of the season.
Now, a tricky away fixture against FC Pune City is in store for NorthEast United. The Stallions were exceptional at home last season, but were shell-shocked after they succumbed to a defeat against Mumbai City FC on the 3rd of October.
Building up to the game, the NorthEast head-coach has asked his side to follow in the footsteps of defending Premier League champions Leicester City. While talking to the journalists in the pre-match press conference, Vingada said:
“Going into the tournament, we probably had the smallest transfer budget, but budgets don’t win championships; the players do. The same thing happened with Leicester in England last season. Their budget was only thirty percent as compared to Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal.
“So, it’s a similar case for me, but with a smaller budget, the team has signed a number of quality players. The investment NorthEast made was very good and they formed a good combination for a good value.”
Much like Leicester, NorthEast too, had a relatively lower transfer budget going into the ISL’s third edition. But, they made some key bargain buys and like the Foxes, they now look like a well-balanced unit.
Claudio Ranieri’s men won the league against all odds, and the coach is expecting something similar from his NorthEast players. While the competition may still be in its primitive stages, Vingada’s men have already made a signal of intent and will be looking to make it to the play-offs for the first time in their history.
