With three games left to play, Chennaiyin FC will need to pull their socks up as they face table-toppers Mumbai City FC in Wednesday’s Indian Super League encounter. When these two teams clashed last time around, the match ended in a draw.
But neither side can afford to play for a point at this stage of the tournament and Chennai coach, Marco Materazzi hopes a little fortune favours them when they take to the pitch tomorrow.
Luck has deserted Materazzi’s side
“Maybe we deserve a little bit of luck but overall I’m happy with my team performances so far. The opposition goalkeepers have been good too. We are actually playing better than last year, despite losing a quality player like Steven Mendoza,” he said.
The side from Tamil Nadu haven’t played bad football but they’ve lacked the hunger to kill off games. As a result, they’ve had to settle for 5 draws this season so far.
“The only time I was worried was the two games against Delhi. Every other game we’ve shown good spirit and good attitude. Against Kerala, we could have closed the game in the first half by scoring a couple more goals.”
“Against Kolkata, we could have won the game because we were dominating the first half. Only thing I regret is wasting some points during the game in Pune. We have wasted some points but we will fight for every ball. We will keep doing it,” he added.
Mendy the star for Chennai
Centre back, Bernard Mendy has been in fine form for Chennaiyin, scoring two outrageous solo goals this season. The defender has bailed his side out of numerous tricky situations and the coach said his outlook towards the game has been phenomenal.
“There is a reason why I’ve chosen Mendy as the captain even though I have a marquee player (Riise). He has had a really good attitude since the first year. I will play only the important players and those who deserve to play.”
“Mendy has shown throughout the three years that he deserves to play. If he keeps performing like this, he will always play. If his attitude changes, he will be out. Every training session and game he has shown the right spirit and put in effort,” Materazzi explained.
Football is not science or maths
The Italian believes his side need not complicate matters and should be only focused on accumulating maximum points from their remaining three games.
“Football is not science or maths. All we can do is try and collect as many points as possible. What matters is getting to the playoffs. Once there, everything starts over again. We had some problems with injuries to Peluso and other players who could have made a difference for us.”
“It is likely that we’ll have Jeje and Peluso for the playoffs if we qualify for it and we’ll have a fresh start,” he concluded.
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