I-League: Chennai City favourites against Punjab, East Bengal search for first win of season

Defending champions Chennai City FC would look to notch up their second consecutive win of the season when they take on Punjab FC at the Guru Nanak Stadium in Ludhiana on Tuesday.

Chennai City have played only one match this season. They won 1-0 at home against newcomers TRAU FC on the opening weekend and will be looking to step up a few gears to find their killer instinct in front of goal.

Speaking ahead of the match, Chennai City head coach Akbar Nawas said, “We have to continue to improve our game in every match we play. It’s always a learning curve for us.”

Punjab FC have registered just one point from their opening two fixtures, having lost 0-3 to Churchill Brothers, followed by a 1-1 draw against East Bengal at home. They led against East Bengal for most part of the game, only to be denied three points by a late equaliser from Juan Mera.

Reflecting on the positives from that match, head coach Yan Law said, “We had a fantastic game against East Bengal and we dominated the entire game. We created many chances and unfortunately could not convert them. The late equaliser wasn’t expected as our defence was rock solid the entire game.”

Looking forward to hosting the defending champions, he said, “The boys are confident about the next game against Chennai City FC and we are not going to make the same mistakes we made in the previous matches.

We are not much worried about their attack as we have quality defenders in our team and they have worked very hard for this game. We are surely looking for a positive result.”

East Bengal take on Neroca

Kolkata giants East Bengal will continue their search for a win when they travel to Imphal to lock horns with a buoyant Neroca in an I-League match at Khuman Lampak in Imphal. East Bengal have drawn the first two matches, while hosts Neroca are coming into the match on the back of a win over Aizawl FC.

The Red and Golds created a number of chances in both the matches but they have not resulted in as many goals, which may be weighing on the team going into the Neroca encounter.

“I would be worried if the team doesn’t create the chances to score but creating the chances in both the games is a sign that the team combination is working well,” said East Bengal Alejandro Menndez.

“Though, we would have liked if we had scored more goals but nonetheless we did score in every match. So, we are closer to scoring more goals and it is a positive sign.”

Talking about their clash against Neroca, the coach said: “We know how they play and their style is pretty similar to that of Real Kashmir. So, we know what we are up against.

“We have to play in our style and be confident about what we do. Our defenders are playing really well and we need to have confidence in our team. I believe we are all set for the next game.”

Neroca rode on a stellar performance from their custodian and skipper Marvin Devon Phillip to win against Aizawl and it will give them the much-needed confidence going into the clash against Quess East Bengal.

Neroca FC, Head Coach, Gift Rai Khan said, “I am very happy for the three points that we have got against Aizawl FC, but it’s important to note that the performance wasn’t up to the mark. “We have been losing a lot of ball and a lot of chances which can prove costly against a stronger opponent.”

Read Comments