Bengaluru FC defender Rahul Bheke has made a dream start to his second stint with the club as he has led the team to four clean sheets in their first four matches in the Indian Super League (ISL).
Bheke delivered a Player-of-the-Match performance on his return to the Mumbai Football Arena to face his former club Mumbai City FC as the Blues held the Islanders to a goalless draw.
The Blues lead the charts with ten points from four matches and their incredible defensive record is one of the biggest reasons for their success so far this campaign.
The 33-year-old credited the team’s desire to keep a shutout as the biggest factor in the team keeping four successive clean sheets.
“The positive thing for us is that all the players are doing their job to defend the goal and protect the goalkeeper. I think in the last four games we have done that well and that’s the reason we got these four clean sheets,” Bheke told indiansuperleague.com in an interview after the match.
Bheke spent three successful seasons at Mumbai City FC winning the League Shield and the ISL Cup with the Islanders while captaining the team. Speaking about his new role with the Blues, Bheke feels the expectations from him haven’t changed a lot.
“My role at Bengaluru FC is similar to what I played at Mumbai City FC. The only difference is that I was playing as a right-back and now I am playing as a centre-back which I am used to. A defender wants a clean sheet and that’s what we are fighting for (here),” he said.
The 33-year-old has also tasted success with Bengaluru FC as he scored the winner in the ISL 2018-19 final to hand the Blues their first ISL Cup. Back again in the darker shade of blue, Bheke is optimistic about the current group of players reaching the heights of 2018-19.
“Surely (we can reach those heights). We are progressing upwards as a team. You can see that right from the Durand Cup that the team is on the right track. In the coming games, I think we will do much better,” he added.
Bheke faced stern challenge on his return to Mumbai as the Islanders tested the Blues’ defence on several occasions but a Bheke-led Bengaluru FC backline passed the test.
“It was a tough game. This was Mumbai City FC’s first home game, so we knew that they would give their best. I know the feeling of playing at this ground. We were prepared for it. It was an even game and I think it was a fair result,” he concluded.
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