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A few days ago, Chennaiyin FC rocked up at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata and stunned ATK to their core, meaning that Antonio Habas’ side relinquished the opportunity to nudge ahead of FC Goa at the perch of the ISL table.
In the process, the Marina Machans also strengthened their own top four credentials, with the victory placing them just a point below Mumbai City FC, having played a match less.
Over the course of that encounter and indeed across the past three months, Chennaiyin FC have portrayed immense valour, especially considering they were written off in November. And, on the eve of their fixture against the Islanders, Owen Coyle echoed similar sentiments, stating,
We have been fighting for our lives for the past three months. When I came here, everybody gave us no chance. If there has a team that has played under pressure in the ISL, it is Chennaiyin. That’s why whenever we play, home or away, we play to win.
Furthermore, the Irishman talked about how his players were relishing the opportunity of playing in such pressure situations, considering such contests usually end up providing plenty of entertainment and intriguing story-lines.
However, he also explicitly mentioned that his players needed to stay true to the ideals that had brought them success so far.
There is no need to change the things that have been successful. It is important that we play the game and not the occasion. We wait for such situations where you test yourselves against the best players, the best coaches and the best teams. So we are looking forward to it.
Throughout Coyle’s tenure, the Marina Machans have represented as irresistible an attacking unit as any in the ISL. Subsequently, the likes of Nerijus Valskis and Rafael Crivellaro have been in scintillating scoring form.
The Brazilian, in particular, has thrived in the spaces which sides have accorded him in between the lines, a trait that has also reared its ugly head for the Islanders often in 2019-20.
Hopefully, we will get that space [in between the lines]. But, even if that doesn’t happen, we have many other attacking facets that we can use. Our strength is not in our individual players, it is in our group. The boys up front are able to do their thing only because Eli and Lucian have been immense at the back.
In fact, the Chennaiyin FC skipper faces the prospect of travelling to the Mumbai Football Arena as an away player for the first time in three years, something that adds another layer of intrigue to an already enticing narrative. Goian quipped,
Obviously, it will be a bit strange coming to Mumbai as an away player. But, I have very special memories of this place and I absolutely loved my time at the club.
Thus, as the encounter dawns upon the footballing fraternity, there are plenty of sub-plots to keep oneself immersed in. Yet, one reckons that Coyle would only want to concern himself with the qualification aspect.
Having said that though, the last thing he would want is his players to baulk at the stakes attached to the fixture, a fact that he lucidly stressed throughout his pre-match press conference.
