Nigel Atangana was full of credit for the Exeter City side that battled to a 0-0 draw against Cheltenham Town at St James Park on Saturday.
The City midfielder was excellent for the 80 minutes he was on the pitch, before being substituted for Jordan Tillson in the closing stages. It was only his second start for Exeter, and came against a side he knows well, as he joined the Grecians from the Robins over summer.
“Today was a tough game, it was my first at home for Exeter, I really enjoyed that," he said. "We played against a good team, who had a good shape, we were unlucky to draw but we have to move on and focus on Tuesday. I’ve not played many games, I made my first start against Cambridge, hopefully I get more but I’ll take any games the gaffer uses me – I need to play and perform.”
On the game itself, Nigel had a significant role in the midfield alongside Archie Collins, as Exeter enjoyed the lion’s share of possession but couldn’t find a way past Scott Flinders in the Cheltenham goal.
“I think we did alright, we did well, we tried everything to score, we were unlucky today but we have to move on and be focused on the next game," he said.
"I’ve got the ability to play the physical and the technical side of the game, I just have to respect what the gaffer asks of me, today me and Archie needed to win all the second balls, I think we did that really well in the first-half, the second-half was a bit harder but I’m just answering what the gaffer’s asked.”
The Frenchman was also quick to compliment the quality in the City squad, who were missing a couple of mainstays in the starting eleven for different reasons: “It’s always easy to play with good players, whether that’s Nicky (Law) or Jake Taylor; we’re lucky to have five good midfielders so when someone’s injured or out for a few weeks, the others can step up and perform so I’m really pleased to play with them.”
Finally, he commented on the quality of the home support at the Park on Saturday, saying that “The fans are brilliant, it was the same against Plymouth, they drive us and give us the extra energy to perform.”