By Vivek Prabhakar Singh

New Delhi [India], March 17 (ANI): Sporting Club (SC) Delhi captain Lamgoulen Gou Hangshing expressed his excitement about playing the home stretch of the Indian Super League (ISL) matches in the national capital and how captaining the team feels like a 'blessing' from god. On the other hand, the club's CEO, Dhruv Sood, said that the team is a 'long-term' project which aims to make a massive presence in the Delhi football scene.

Starting from Thursday onwards, the Sporting Club Delhi will start their home stretch of matches in the ISL after a disappointing start to the tournament, when they play Jamshedpur FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in the national capital. So far in their four matches, Sporting Club Delhi has registered one draw and three losses, a 2-0 defeat to Bengaluru FC, a 4-1 defeat to East Bengal FC and a 1-0 loss to FC Goa, all of them away from home. The club, which rebranded to Sporting Club Delhi after a six-year-run as Hyderabad FC from 2019-2025, will be aiming to get some results in their favour when they play in front of the passionate Delhi crowd.

Speaking to ANI about captaining the club, Gogou said, 'Honestly, it feels amazing, it is something beyond my imagination, God has blessed me a lot. I never dreamt of these things, but luckily God has something for me, and I feel amazing.'

On the return of ISL earlier this year, from February 14 onwards, after months of delays, Hangshing said that the players for long wondered if football would start again, but are happy to see that the sport is 'alive' once again. He is excited about the beginning of his team's home leg from Thursday onwards.

'This will be one of the biggest moments for us as a player (playing in front of passionate home fans in Delhi). A new team and first home game with the support of fans, family and loved ones. It would be great, and hopefully, we would have a memorable night over there, and hopefully, by god's grace, we will win,' he added.

The skipper also pointed out the high level of professionalism within the players and coaching/management staff and how they share a great relationship.

The club's CEO Dhruv Sood, also expressed his excitement for the home leg of the ISL and said that the team is 'eager to get the show going'.

Dhruv also pointed out how the team is young, but is still growing and gelling together well. He is optimistic about all the hard work translating into results soon.

'We have played some good football. While we have been unlucky with the results, our performances deserve much more. I am excited to see what our players can offer. I think we are an upcoming team and are here to bring some surprises. This year, it has been a bit of a transition, but I still expect us to climb up the table soon (currently sitting at the 13th spot), especially with our home games coming. Hopefully, the fans will come out and support us. With them behind us, we will get up there in the points tally,' he added.

The club CEO said that despite the hardships due to the league starting late, everyone has been working hard and the training has been on since November.

'It is a lot of new faces. It normally takes a year or two for people to gel the team together. Gogou (the captain) himself has been a fantastic influence in the dressing room. We have had other senior players like Alex, we have Karanjit, we have Ashutosh, who have the Indian team experience also. They have been leading the dressing room. It is important in a young dressing room to have that experience to get the boys together,' added Dhruv, talking about the players who are the dressing room leaders.

'The results will come. We are patient, it is a long-term project. We are not here for the short term. We are very confident in the boys, both in the coaching staff as well as in the players,' he added.

Dhruv also emphasised the importance of building a football community in Delhi, pointing out how vibrant it was back in the 1990s and 2000s.

'Matches used to take place in Ambedkar Stadium. The Durand Cup was also hosted here. The Indian team also used to come here and play. But now, it has become a little more fragmented. Our objective is to be a part of the community, engage with the academies and amateur football scene here. I myself play a bit in the amateur scene here. So it is important to have a connection with the community (of Delhi fans),' he added.

Dhruv said that the team has a couple of Delhi players in their squad, but the team is on the lookout for more.

'Hopefully we have more and more players from Delhi. It will take time. But as the culture grows, as more fans come to the stadium, as more kids take up the sport, I am sure we will soon have enough Delhi players even in the national team,' he concluded.

Sporting Club Delhi head coach Tomasz Tchorz spoke on his experience as the coach of SC Delhi, saying that since the very beginning, from his days as a student, he wanted to be a part of a 'big city with different communities, different cultures, religions and languages'.

'Now I have the opportunity to live in this kind of city, and I am very happy to be here. This season is very special because it is a little bit abnormal situation in which we are in. We started a little bit late. But we were trying to have a good pre-season. We used the time available with us well, thanks to our management. We were able to work normally and professionally. The management provided us with all the resources they could. We are happy that ISL is back,' he added.

Tomasz said that the Indian pool of talent within the team is something he sees having 'huge potential and talent'.

'This season, it is really good for them since less foreigners are playing. They have a chance to showcase their skills. Teams play mostly with local players. You can see local talents. So from the perspective of development, it's not that bad. From the perspective of merchandising or marketing, or any other aspects, I think India has the potential to grow and to grow fast. But we have to believe in these young players. We have a lot of them in our team. And we have to be a platform for them, a support system for them to grow,' he said.

Tomasz also spoke on the support of the local fans during the home stretch of ISL matches, who he termed as the team's '12th player'.

'I see the interest in social media. I see that they want to come in a huge number. Also, they are visible during our training. Sometimes they stop us in the streets. They know who we are. But this will be the first real opportunity to play the game together. We are players and coaches, and fans on the stands. I hope they will have an enjoyable time. I hope that our games will serve as an event for people to meet. For people to get to know each other better. To create friendships with new people,' he concluded. (ANI)