"It brings the best out of the group" - Valentin Altenburg reflects on must-win situation for Kalinga Lancers in Hockey India League [Exclusive]

Valentin Altenburg's Kalinga Lancers opted to play an attractive, fast and free-flowing game as part of their Hockey India League campaign which thrilled the galleries but did not always bring forth the desired results.

After failing to earn full points in three close games, the Lancers coasted to an emphatic six-goal win against the Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers which reignited their title hopes.

Just over two weeks after trouncing the Tigers, the Lancers are in a must-win situation against Colin Batch's side who are eager to tilt the scales while also aiming to progress to the semifinals of the Hockey India League.

In an exclusive interaction with Sportskeeda ahead of the big match in Ranchi, Altenburg asserted that a must-win situation will bring out the best in the group while also reflecting on the performance of his side thus far.

"Emotionally, everyone knows it's a must-win. At the same time, the last game was also a must-win for us. So we are coming from a must-win game, going to a must-win game, and probably will continue to have must-win games, which is great. Because I realized today in training, everybody is aware of that," Valentin Altenburg stated.

"Everybody is looking forward to crunch time. And it brings the best out of the group and he individual. So I'm very aware of the fact that we, as a group, will definitely approach a must-win game differently as compared to the other ones," he revealed.

While nothing will change from a strategic point of view, the tactics that the Lancers will adopt to counter the Tigers will be very different from how the defending champions faced off against the Delhi Pipers in their last game.

Altenburg quipped that he does not wish to give Colin Batch a heads-up by going into the finer details of the game plan ahead of the crucial Hockey India League encounter.

"We will also adapt tactically to the Tigers in comparison to Delhi because they are totally different teams and have a different playing style. I cannot elaborate on that more because I don't want to give Colin a heads-up. But we will definitely play differently tactic-wise," he said.

"Strategy-wise, we never changed and we won't change, because we always fight hard to be the team that's controlling the game. And we control the game by ball position. And in the moments where we do that very well, we can be very dangerous," the 43-year-old coach explained.

Having a strong defense as a foundation will be the key for the Lancers after having struggled to control the opening half of the game against Delhi SG Pipers in their previous Hockey India League encounter.

After trailing 1-4 in the opening half, the Lancers scripted a dramatic comeback to force a shootout where they picked up a bonus point.

"The foundation of it is to have a strong defence such that we actually have a lot of ball possession. And in the last game, in one half, we struggled with the defence. And that's why we also struggled to control the game," he opined. "The fact that it's a must-win game will definitely bring the best out of our team."

The Lancers have scored the maximum number of goals in the Hockey India League (25) but have been undone by the goals conceded (21). Altenburg declared that while he credits the team for playing attractive hockey and scoring a huge number of goals, the accountability for his team conceding lies solely with the coach.

"I think the 25 goals, the attractiveness with the offensive hockey needs to be credited to the team. The fact that we conceded so many goals and struggled defensively is the responsibility of the coach. So the coach has to do better and the team is already doing great," he observed.

"We want to grow together as a team in the Hockey India League" - Valentin Altenburg

Altenburg lauded Angad Bir Singh and Hendrickx - Source: Hockey India League

The Kalinga Lancers have a formidable array of talent in the ranks with Thierry Brinkman making his mark as the leading scorer of the competition of the ongoing Hockey India League competition thus far.

A solid defensive line-up manned by Belgian stalwarts Antoine Kina and Arthur van Doren is further complemented by the presence of ace drag-flicker Alexander Hendrickx who has netted six goals for the Lancers. Krishan Pathak and Tobias Reynolds-Cotterill have been outstanding in front of goal.

"Kina and van Doren know each other very well. And because of that, they are really helping the rest around them with a lot of good coaching. They always know where the other one is standing. And that gives us a lot of stability in the back," said Altenburg who coached the Geman national side to a bronze-medal finish in Rio 2016.

"Obviously, having Alexander Hendricks, with the danger he presents for the opposition with the PCs, is very special for this Kalinga group," he added.

Altenburg though is not focused solely on the international talent in the ranks. The veteran coach detailed the specific individual skills of the young and upcoming Indian players on the side while predicting that a few of them would make it big thanks to the Hockey India League.

"Rabi (Rabichandra Singh) is a very important player for us in the midfield area because he is constantly chasing opponents down and recovering balls for us. Dilpreet Singh is opening up the pitch in a way that you don't really see in world hockey. Sanjay is extremely important for us on the flank using his speed and quality with the ball," Altenburg explained.

"Apart from being a skilful striker Angad (Angad Bir Singh) is also very skilful in stealing balls and being aggressive in defence. I wouldn't be surprised if he has a great future ahead. We also have Rohit Kullu who is a young kid with great talent. He has a lot of technical skills and a great mentality," he reckoned.

While results are important, Valentin Altenburg stressed that growing as a team and spending time together off the pitch is part of the essence of the Hockey India League.

"I am aware of the fact that not everything will always work perfectly. But for me, it's a huge privilege to work together with players like Dilpreet and, for example, and also Enrique Gonzalez. Because they have so much of a hockey heart. They bring so much emotion to training and to the games, that I really enjoy being part of that group," he disclosed.

"We are a very ambitious squad looking for results. And at the same time, it's also part of our identity that we really want to grow together as a team in the Hockey India League. We also want to enjoy the time that we spend here together off the pitch, which is a lot of time," he stated.

Regardless of whether or not the Kalinga Lancers progress to the semifinals, hockey fans will continue to be enthralled by the flair and skill of Altenburg's chargers who have two games on hand in the pool stage of the Hockey India League.