Chennai: Chennaiyin FC will welcome back a host of “key” players as they seek to end a five-year wait for silverware at the Kalinga Super Cup in Bhubaneswar.
Chennaiyin, who last won a title – the Indian Super League trophy – in 2018, have been placed alongside heavyweights Mumbai City FC, Punjab FC and Gokulam Kerala FC in the Super Cup Group C. The Owen Coyle-coached Chennaiyin will begin their campaign with a clash against fellow ISL club Punjab at the Kalinga Stadium on Thursday, in their first match of the new year.
Ahead of their tournament opener, Chennaiyin, sitting seventh on the ISL table with 12 points halfway through the 2023-24 season, received a huge boost as four domestic players made themselves available for selection.After being sidelined with different injuries, left-back Aakash Sangwan, versatile defender Ankit Mukherjee and the forward duo of Rahim Ali and Farukh Choudhary are ready to return to match action.
“We certainly believe that we are capable of doing it (ending the wait for a title). We want to be at the business end fighting for trophies. In this competition, we have to be at our best. The issues we have had so far have mostly been injury-related; we lost key players in key positions, especially at full-back. We have now got them back, which is good news and will help us give more balance to the team,” Coyle told TOI from Bhubaneswar on Wednesday.
“Ankit is back in training, Farukh is available and Rahim is back in the squad. There is Aakash as well, so we had four big players missing. It will be great to have them back in the squad; that is why I am excited for this tournament,” said Coyle, who will also have the luxury of fielding all six registered foreigners on the pitch at a time.
Blasters win easy:
Kerala Blasters FC started their Super Cup campaign with an easy 3-1 win against Shilling Lajong on Wednesday. Later in the day, Jamshedpur FC came from a goal down to beat NorthEast United FC 2-1. Nestor Albiach Roger gave NorthEast the lead but Jamshedpur’s Daniel Chima Chukwu and Steve Ambri scored in the second-half to seal the deal.
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Chennaiyin, who last won a title – the Indian Super League trophy – in 2018, have been placed alongside heavyweights Mumbai City FC, Punjab FC and Gokulam Kerala FC in the Super Cup Group C. The Owen Coyle-coached Chennaiyin will begin their campaign with a clash against fellow ISL club Punjab at the Kalinga Stadium on Thursday, in their first match of the new year.
Ahead of their tournament opener, Chennaiyin, sitting seventh on the ISL table with 12 points halfway through the 2023-24 season, received a huge boost as four domestic players made themselves available for selection.After being sidelined with different injuries, left-back Aakash Sangwan, versatile defender Ankit Mukherjee and the forward duo of Rahim Ali and Farukh Choudhary are ready to return to match action.
“We certainly believe that we are capable of doing it (ending the wait for a title). We want to be at the business end fighting for trophies. In this competition, we have to be at our best. The issues we have had so far have mostly been injury-related; we lost key players in key positions, especially at full-back. We have now got them back, which is good news and will help us give more balance to the team,” Coyle told TOI from Bhubaneswar on Wednesday.
“Ankit is back in training, Farukh is available and Rahim is back in the squad. There is Aakash as well, so we had four big players missing. It will be great to have them back in the squad; that is why I am excited for this tournament,” said Coyle, who will also have the luxury of fielding all six registered foreigners on the pitch at a time.
Blasters win easy:
Kerala Blasters FC started their Super Cup campaign with an easy 3-1 win against Shilling Lajong on Wednesday. Later in the day, Jamshedpur FC came from a goal down to beat NorthEast United FC 2-1. Nestor Albiach Roger gave NorthEast the lead but Jamshedpur’s Daniel Chima Chukwu and Steve Ambri scored in the second-half to seal the deal.
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Kerala Blasters stroll past Shillong Lajong in Super Cup opener
Kerala Blasters, led by Ivan Vukomanovic, showed dominance over Shilling Lajong at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Despite missing key players, the Blasters won 3-1 in their Super Cup campaign. Peprah scored twice in the first half, while Lajong pulled one back through Renan Paulino. The game was settled with a Mohammed Aimen header in the 46th minute.
Kerala Blasters, led by Ivan Vukomanovic, showed dominance over Shilling Lajong at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Despite missing key players, the Blasters won 3-1 in their Super Cup campaign. Peprah scored twice in the first half, while Lajong pulled one back through Renan Paulino. The game was settled with a Mohammed Aimen header in the 46th minute.