New-look Bengaluru FC start against NEUFC in ISL

All eyes will be on how Bengaluru FC as the club, in their latest iteration, will kick off their Indian Super League campaign against NorthEast United FC at the GMC Athletic Stadium in Goa on Saturday.

The Blues enjoyed unprecedented success in the Ashley Westwood era, continued to do so with eye-catching performances in the image of Albert Roca before a rockier, but still somewhat successful time, under Carles Cuadrat. The latest version will be as per Marco Pezzaiuoli.

The German has a new challenge ahead with the club having slightly tweaked its philosophy. The ambition has been retained but the purse strings are no longer lightly tied, the focus is to bring youngsters from within the club while adding players, who are not the biggest of names.

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They have done this before, in their first season, but times have changed. Expectations weigh heavily and the quality around them has improved.

"We are motivated and have a good squad and our wish is to get into the semifinals. We need to change something because the last two seasons were not that successful," said Pezzaiuoli ahead of the opener.

The pre-season has been long but disjointed with players arriving late from international duty. The core has changed, save for Sunil Chhetri and Gurpreet Singh Sandhu. Five new foreigners have come in.

There is evidence to suggest that the team is being sculpted to the new manager's aesthetics, especially from the AFC Cup where they improved as the tournament progressed. The Durand Cup performance - with young, new and fringe players - will give the coach confidence. But the youngsters, no doubt talented, are yet largely untested.

"Durand Cup is still not very high level but they did well. (Now) We are playing every four days and meeting the best in the league. This is different, pressure is also different. We will see a lot of young players this season and sometimes it will take more time as the young players try to keep their level and improve," said the German coach.

BFC have varied and vibrant options in attack and should Prince Ibara fill the giant Miku shaped hole in attack, the season will go a lot smoother. In Cleiton Silva and Chhetri, they have experience and goals. From all accounts, the coach is keen on high-intensity football but perhaps it would be done intermittently, considering Chhetri's age. The Indian captain is still good for goals but, fit as he is, the idea should be managing his energy so he can be fresh at the business end of the field.

The key will also be finding the right balance in defence and midfield. How the club uses their foreigners will be vital.

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Their opponents, NUEFC, are no slouches either. Their semifinal run under Khalid Jamil last season earned him the permanent job. And Jamil and BFC have a history that goes back to a time when he was coaching Mumbai FC. They also have Deshorn Brown, who came into his own at the club after a tame start at BFC, and midfield magician Federico Gallego.

"They are a strong team, semifinals last season. We face a team with a strong mentality, they are compact. We have to be good defensively and not give any chances," said Pezzaiouli.