The prospects of Chennaiyin FC making the playoffs are dwindling with each matchday as they have only won one of their past seven games. If they want to keep their aspirations alive, they must win all of their remaining games, the next of which is against their archrivals Kerala Blasters FC. Head coach Owen Coyle and Ryan Edwards spoke to the media ahead of the game against Kerala Blasters FC.
Owen Coyle on the Southern Derby:
Chennaiyin FC’s record versus Kerala Blasters in the Marina Arena is outstanding. The Marina Machans has never lost against the Blasters at their home since the commencement of ISL. Owen Coyle talked about Kerala’s strength and said that it would be the ideal moment to play the Blasters and try to make things better because of the two groups’ outstanding history and competitive intensity.
“We’re competing against, probably one of the most talented forward lines in the league. With Jimenez, Peprah, Adrian Luna, Noah Sadaoui, one of the best players in the league in my opinion. So, they certainly have some great talent going forward. But equally we know that we’ve got good players that can cope with that. And if we do that, it gives us a platform to go and win the game.”
“Because of the rivalry, any time is a good time to play Kerala Blasters. We have a great home record, probably 100%. I think this is the perfect game for us to be at our best. Against great opponents. The rivalry between the fans and everything else. And that’s the big thing. We want to put a smile on those fans’ faces. The best way to do that is perform well against Kerala and win the game. It’s a derby game. It’s important, not only for the three points, but for the bragging rights for supporters.”
Owen Coyle on Injury Updates:
Chennaiyin’s subpar performances this season have been greatly impacted by injuries. Nearly every player has missed some games due to injury, whether they were starters or benchwarmers. An optimistic Owen Coyle gave an update on Luka Brambilla, Vignesh, Irfan, and Ankit Mukherjee’s availability.
“Lukas is fit, and he’s looking really good now, after his ankle injury. Irfan had been troubled for a few weeks as well, with an abdominal thing, that’s all cleared away. So, I’m hoping that you see Irfan back to his best. Gurkirat will not be involved due to a family illness. Vignesh will miss obviously, but hopefully, he’ll be available for the next game. Ankit continues to try and keep pushing himself on.”
Owen Coyle on poor home form:
Even though Chennaiyin failed to thrive away from home last year, their incredible home run helped them advance to the playoffs. Although Owen Coyle has often said that the team would try to take advantage of the home games, they have ultimately failed. In their eight games, they have only succeeded once, and that success came against a weaker Hyderabad FC. Owen Coyle talked about their recent disappointing performances at home and what they need to do to improve.
“What we haven’t done well enough is capitalize on the home games. We’ve had some good performances, draws against Odisha, Mumbai, Goa against good teams. But Odisha game we know we should have won. Goa we could have won. Can we do better? 100%. From me all the way through, we take that on board. Nobody runs from that; nobody hides from that. Have we made mistakes at critical times? Absolutely. We have passionate players, people that care about the game. That’s what we need to show on the field tomorrow night.”
Owen Coyle on mentality of his players:
Chennaiyin FC players have frequently appeared hopeless after conceding a goal. Contrary to previous Owen Coyle squads, this set of players sometimes lacks the battling spirit to make comebacks in games. Owen Coyle stated that his players are warriors who believe in themselves, but that they must prove it to the supporters by bringing them onto the pitch.
“The truth is, we, the players and everybody, we have to do better. It’s not that they’re not lacking fight. I do accept the first half performance against Goa was very poor. But it wasn’t their lack of fight. They just didn’t do well enough, and they gave the ball away. It has to be evident to everybody’s eyes that they’re doing that. I accept that. There’s no issue with that. I think that’s really important. We can come and explain what we’re doing, how we’re trying to chat about it, but it’s on the field that the players have to show.”
Owen Coyle and Ryan Edwards on dressing room issues:
Earlier this week, there were allegations that the Chennaiyin FC dressing room was in a bizarre state, with players separated into groups and certain players displaying little interest in whether the club won or lost. Both Ryan Edwards and Owen Coyle went on to say that these rumors are unwarranted and directed at the team because they are currently having a difficult run of results.
“It’s absolute nonsense. It goes back to my earlier point, when you’re having difficult runs or whatever, then that’s going to happen. Are there disagreements? Well, there’s always disagreements, but not to the extent of somebody trying to make a drama and make a story from it. But the simplest answer to that, is to win games. When you’re winning games, there’s nothing said, but of course, if you’re not, somebody wants to have a story, somebody wants to create something.”, added Owen Coyle.
“I’ve seen it myself, I did see it online, and just, it’s not like I haven’t seen it before, when you’re in bad runs, or teams are going through bad spells, it’s just, I don’t know who started, or where he comes from, or who do you think they know at the club, that, even if he did that, I wouldn’t tell them that.”, added Ryan Edwards.
Ryan Edwards on conceding soft goals:
From game one against Odisha FC to the last game against FC Goa, Chennaiyin FC and its defense have a history of conceding soft goals, falling behind in games, and ultimately losing critical points. As the club’s captain and an integral part of the Chennaiyin defense, Ryan Edwards spoke about the soft goals conceded and what the squad needs to work on to prevent them in the final few matches.
“For example, the first goal on the weekend (against Goa). Mistakes are going to happen. We need to limit them. They should have been limited enough by now. Of course, we’ve conceded too many. I’m just trying to get the head of the individual clear enough to realize that there’s still a lot of time to be played. But the individual errors, it doesn’t help. They need to stop. And it’s important that if you do make one, you don’t make another one. And you learn from it very quickly.”
Follow Footy India on Instagram and X for more updates on Indian Football.
Footy India 