Chennaiyin’s revival faces FC Goa test

CHENNAI: Chennaiyin FC’S minirevival of sorts will be put to test when they face FC Goa in their Indian Super League match at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday.

The Marina Machans have been in good form of late and are unbeaten in the last four games with two draws and two wins. The recent revival of form, spearheaded by new coach Owen Coyle, has seen them overcome a disastrous start to the season where they managed to get only a point from the first four games.

The team is placed eighth on the table but a win over Goa can propel them to sixth. However, it will not be an easy task.

“We face a fantastic team. FC Goa are at the top of the table on merit. For me, they are the best team in the country, the table doesn’t lie. They have more points than anyone because they have quality. We respect them but do not fear them,” said Coyle.

FC Goa are also in good form and are second in the table with 18 points from nine matches. They are also on a three-match winning run, with the last game against Odisha ending 3-0 in their favour.

Coyle will want his star forward Nerijus Valskis to continue his purple patch. The Lithuanian forward has scored five goals in the last four games and is third on the goal scoring charts. In fact, he has contributed 62.5 per cent of Chennaiyin’s goals. Much will also depend on Lallianzuala Chhangte who opened his tally for the season against Kerala Blasters.

FC Goa’s attack will pose plenty of problems for the Chennaiyin defence as well. Ferran Corominas, since coming back from injury, has been in good goal scoring form and has tallied six goals already.

But one thing coach Sergio Lobera would like to see is his team improve its conversion rate. “I said after the match (against Odisha) that we need to improve on our mistakes and we are working to try and be 100 per cent for the next game,” said Lobera on Wednesday.