Will respect them on the pitch but continue to focus on ourselves: Bengaluru FC head coach ahead of Durand Cup semi-final clash against Hyderabad FC

After edging past Odisha FC in the quarter-finals, Bengaluru FC (BFC) will face Indian Super League (ISL) champions Hyderabad FC in the Durand Cup 2022 semi-finals on Thursday, September 15.

BFC head coach Simon Grayson underlined the strengths of their opponents ahead of his side's all-important clash against the Nizams.

In the pre-match press conference, the Englishman stated:

“It’s going to be a tough game against Hyderabad, who are the side that won the Indian Super League last season. They’re a very talented team with a good strike force that also has last season’s leading goal scorer (Bartholomew Ogbeche).

"While I’m certain that we will respect them on the pitch, we will continue to focus on ourselves and the trouble we want to cause them.”

"We’re getting stronger physically and mentally" - Simon Grayson positive about Bengaluru FC's development ahead of the ISL season

The Blues won two and drew two of their Durand Cup group stage games to qualify for the quarter-finals.

Facing Odisha FC in the knockouts, Bengaluru FC took the lead in the 98th minute of extra-time through Sivasakthi Narayanan. However, a few minutes later, Odisha FC got themselves back into the game through a Diego Mauricio goal.

Right before the referee could blow the whistle to bring upon the dreaded penalty shootout, Roy Krishna scored a late winner.

Grayson, during the media interaction, stated that as a team Bengaluru FC are getting stronger with every passing day. He explained:

"As a group, we’ve been together for nearly eight weeks, and have put in a lot of work on the training pitch. There’s a spirit about this team now and we’re getting stronger physically and mentally. We want to be able to find the right balance ahead of the bigger picture, which is the ISL season,” averred the gaffer.

Meanwhile, Hyderabad FC are coming into the semi-finals on the back of a 3-1 victory over Rajasthan United FC in the quarters. Even in the group stages, they won three of their four games and looked like a well-settled unit.

Bengaluru FC's match-winner from the previous game, Krishna, who was also present at the press conference, lauded the Nizams. However, the Fijian forward specified that he was focusing more on himself than the opposition. He stated:

"Hyderabad FC are a good team, we know their strengths and weaknesses. No disrespect to them, but as a player I am focusing more on myself than the opposition I'm facing," Krishna said.

The much-anticipated clash will kick-off at the Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan in Kolkata on September 15 from 6.00 pm IST.