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The Kalinga Warriors Prepare for Bengaluru FC in a Crucial Away Clash

Odisha FC Media
January 21 2025

The Kalinga Warriors Prepare for Bengaluru FC in a Crucial Away Clash

Odisha FC continues their consecutive away fixtures as they travel to Bengaluru to face Bengaluru FC at the Sri Kanteerava Stadium on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, with kickoff scheduled at 7:30 PM IST.

The two teams already met this season in December, where the Kalinga Warriors put on a stellar show, claiming an exhilarating 4-2 victory at their home ground, the Kalinga Stadium.

Carlos Delgado will be unavailable for this encounter due to suspension following a red card in the previous match. On the other hand, Bengaluru FC comes into this fixture with a 1-0 loss to Mohammedan SC and a 1-1 draw against Hyderabad FC in their last two matches.

On Monday, Odisha FC held their pre-match press conference at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, with the Head Coach Sergio Lobera and player Rahul KP.

Coach Sergio Lobera acknowledged the difficulty of playing against Bengaluru FC at home, saying: “We know how difficult it is to play against BFC, especially when they are playing at home. They are a very strong team at home. They even defeated Mohammedan SC in the last game, but they are strong. But we need to use our tools. We have a new opportunity and we are working on that. Finally, it's a new opportunity to get three very important points for us. Even with the difficulties in terms of playing against very good opponents, we are excited about this challenge and we are ready.”

Addressing the team's approach to maintaining balance, Lobera commented: “It’s difficult because scoring two goals in an ISL game is already challenging and we are doing that. But the problem arises when we concede. We need to have more balance when we lose the ball, and this is my responsibility as a coach. We need to improve as a team. We are attacking and playing attacking football, but we also need to maintain balance when losing possession to avoid conceding goals and chances. Sometimes we need to be more clinical, but our main concern now is to find balance between attack and defense.”

Lobera also addressed the need for adaptability: “This game will be more difficult than the one we played at home against BFC. It’s impossible to compare games or squads, as things change. For example, against Kerala, we missed important players like Puitea, Isak, Hugo and Rahul. We had to adjust the formation to a 4-4-2, even though it’s not our strongest setup. The coming game will be different and we need to prepare for various scenarios to compete at the highest level and secure three critical points.”

Rahul expressed his excitement about joining Odisha FC: “I feel very happy because I always wanted to work with the coach Sergio. He’s been in the ISL for so many years, and it’s every player’s dream to work under him. I’m thankful to my teammates, the coaching staff, physio team, ground staff and media staff – everyone made me feel comfortable in just a few days. Joining in the middle of the season can be challenging, but everyone’s support helped me adjust quickly. Playing for Odisha FC against Chennai was amazing.”

Match Details:
Bengaluru FC vs Odisha FC
January 22, 2025,  | Wednesday | 7:30 PM | Sri Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru FC
Live on Sports18, JioCinema, Star Sports-3

The Kalinga Warriors Prepare for Bengaluru FC in a Crucial Away Clash

Odisha FC Media
January 21 2025

The Kalinga Warriors Prepare for Bengaluru FC in a Crucial Away Clash

Odisha FC continues their consecutive away fixtures as they travel to Bengaluru to face Bengaluru FC at the Sri Kanteerava Stadium on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, with kickoff scheduled at 7:30 PM IST.

The two teams already met this season in December, where the Kalinga Warriors put on a stellar show, claiming an exhilarating 4-2 victory at their home ground, the Kalinga Stadium.

Carlos Delgado will be unavailable for this encounter due to suspension following a red card in the previous match. On the other hand, Bengaluru FC comes into this fixture with a 1-0 loss to Mohammedan SC and a 1-1 draw against Hyderabad FC in their last two matches.

On Monday, Odisha FC held their pre-match press conference at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, with the Head Coach Sergio Lobera and player Rahul KP.

Coach Sergio Lobera acknowledged the difficulty of playing against Bengaluru FC at home, saying: “We know how difficult it is to play against BFC, especially when they are playing at home. They are a very strong team at home. They even defeated Mohammedan SC in the last game, but they are strong. But we need to use our tools. We have a new opportunity and we are working on that. Finally, it's a new opportunity to get three very important points for us. Even with the difficulties in terms of playing against very good opponents, we are excited about this challenge and we are ready.”

Addressing the team's approach to maintaining balance, Lobera commented: “It’s difficult because scoring two goals in an ISL game is already challenging and we are doing that. But the problem arises when we concede. We need to have more balance when we lose the ball, and this is my responsibility as a coach. We need to improve as a team. We are attacking and playing attacking football, but we also need to maintain balance when losing possession to avoid conceding goals and chances. Sometimes we need to be more clinical, but our main concern now is to find balance between attack and defense.”

Lobera also addressed the need for adaptability: “This game will be more difficult than the one we played at home against BFC. It’s impossible to compare games or squads, as things change. For example, against Kerala, we missed important players like Puitea, Isak, Hugo and Rahul. We had to adjust the formation to a 4-4-2, even though it’s not our strongest setup. The coming game will be different and we need to prepare for various scenarios to compete at the highest level and secure three critical points.”

Rahul expressed his excitement about joining Odisha FC: “I feel very happy because I always wanted to work with the coach Sergio. He’s been in the ISL for so many years, and it’s every player’s dream to work under him. I’m thankful to my teammates, the coaching staff, physio team, ground staff and media staff – everyone made me feel comfortable in just a few days. Joining in the middle of the season can be challenging, but everyone’s support helped me adjust quickly. Playing for Odisha FC against Chennai was amazing.”

Match Details:
Bengaluru FC vs Odisha FC
January 22, 2025,  | Wednesday | 7:30 PM | Sri Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru FC
Live on Sports18, JioCinema, Star Sports-3