Goa: After a heartbreaking last-minute loss to ATK-Mohun Bagan, Chennaiyin FC will take on table-toppers Mumbai City FC on Monday at the GMC Stadium in Bambolim. The two time ISL Champions are having one of the tough seasons as the team couldn’t deliver the way they did last year under Owen Coyle.
The team has lost their captain Rafael Crivellaro due to injury and are waiting for Manuel Lanzarote to start them after ending his 14-days isolation. Mumbai have been playing some outstanding football but Chennaiyin coach Csaba Laszlo is determined to make an upset against the league leaders.
“They (our forwards) are asked to score whenever there’s a possibility, that’s one of the main points,” Laszlo said in the pre-match press conference. “We have been unlucky in many cases where we created chances and have missed. I can’t teach them how to create chances but in the last moment, you must be there to put the ball into the net. And tomorrow’s game is the same. I’m sure we will get chances and possibilities to use them. But (we need) more attention, instinct and be hungry for goals.”
He further added, “We have to try to break them down. We have our tactical plans which we did in the first game. We were nearly successful but we were unlucky.”
On the other hand, Mumbai has been having the best season of the whole ISL since its inaugural session. They have been playing some really good football under Sergio Lobera this season. Even the players have been proving their worth under the coach and that has been reflected in their performance.
Players like Mourtada Fall, Hugo Boumous, Adam Le Fondre have been charismatic to say at least for the Islanders this season. Even the young-guns like Bipin Singh, Amay Ranawade, Vikram Pratap Singh has been performing well under the Spanish coach.
The last match was a hard-fought win against SC East Bengal, so Lobera was focused on the Chennaiyin match as his statement in the pre-match press conference reflected it. “I was working everyday with the City Football Group and Mumbai City, trying to build a winning team with players suited to our style of play,” Lobera said.
Lobera further added, “I am happy now because we are in a good position but the most important thing now is the end of the season. We are playing well, (we have) very good stats, very good numbers. We are on top of the table but in this league and during this phase, everything is possible in seven days. You have 3 games in 10 days and you can lose points. We have to keep working the same way.”
