Chennaiyin FC is preparing for two consecutive games on the road against Punjab FC and Jamshedpur FC after a fascinating 2-2 draw with FC Goa at the Marina Arena. First up is Panagiotis Dilmperis’ Punjab FC, who has won three of their first four games while losing only to league leaders Bengaluru FC. Owen Coyle and Indian international Farukh Choudhary spoke to the media and answered their questions prior to the trip to Delhi.
“We felt a little bit aggrieved to have lost the game in Delhi”, Owen Coyle on last season’s loss
After losing their first ten games, Punjab FC defeated Chennaiyin FC at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi to win their first Indian Super League match. When questioned about his feelings regarding the opponents for the forthcoming match, Owen Coyle was quick to admit that they had lost the same match the previous year and stated that he felt unhappy after the defeat. With nine points out of a possible twelve, the Scottish coach complimented Punjab’s performance at the start of the season and new head coach Panagiotis Dilmperis.
“I think they’ve started very well. I think they’ve signed some very good players. They obviously lost some good players. Jordan, Talal in terms of the foreigners. But I think they’ve brought good players in to complement Luka (Majcen), who’s been a terrific professional, a terrific player for the club. it’s going to certainly be a tough game, one we’re looking forward to. The pitch will be a difficult pitch because I think there was a concert there the other day. So that’s going to be the same for both teams, which is not ideal, but we just have to get on with it and make sure we do the best of it.”
“We felt a little bit aggrieved to have lost the game in Delhi. But against Punjab, if you remember, I think we scored, we thought three good goals in the game that were all disallowed. That being said, we never played as well as we can, but we’re always still a goal threat in that game. So what we want to do is carry our form and go there for another tough away game. We’ve did very well on our travels and we want to do that again. We just have to make sure we’re the best version of Chennaiyin if we are, we believe that we can win a tough game.”
“I get excited as a fan when I see young players, even if it’s other teams”, Coyle praised Abhishek and Nihal
Owen Coyle, who has spent four years in India, has always had a knack for identifying up-and-coming Indian players in the league. He recently talked about how he began to follow Hnamte back in his East Bengal days. In his tenure in India, Owen Coyle has not just identified young players but also developed a number of Indian teenagers, like Boris Singh, Dinliana, and Jitendra Singh, to mention a few. When asked if any young players this season have captured his attention, he pointed out Punjab FC’s young duo of Abhishek Singh and Nihal Sudeesh.
“I think there are loads of players on other teams that I think are very good players and that’s why we have such a competitive league this year. I get excited as a fan when I see young players, even if it’s other teams and we face a number of those in the Punjab game. Young Abhishek, he caught my eye last year, who I think has done very well at Punjab, played at full-back, and then he’s moved over to the other side now as well.”
“The young lad from Kerala (Nihal Sudeesh) who plays on the wing now with Punjab. He’s had a terrific start start to the season. Played some minutes last year with Kerala he’s got pace and now he’s playing week in and week out. I hope he doesn’t do well against me but you can see with young players like that stepping in. That’s always really good to see.”
“Kiyan is knocking at the door ready to play”, Owen Coyle on lack of minutes for Kiyan Nassiri
Kiyan Nassiri moved from Mohun Bagan Super Giants to Chennaiyin FC in the summer with the intention of playing more under Owen Coyle, who has a reputation for helping Indian youngsters develop, as was previously mentioned. However, Kiyan’s start to life down south hasn’t been remarkable as he hasn’t started any games and has only played 29 minutes in two substitute appearances this season. Coyle discussed how the national team call-up impacted Kiyan’s fitness and how the young striker will fit into his plans as the season unfolds.
“Kiyan, who we all admire, I think he’s going to be a terrific player for sure. Kiyan obviously went with the national team. We were hoping that he got minutes because we were in pre-season, remember. And he never got minutes when he was away. But while he was away, we then had two or three games. So boys then are at higher fitness levels and that’s where Kiyan was a little but unfortunate.”
“But you look at Kiyan now and his training is at a higher standard every day, so he’s knocking at the door ready to play. When he gets his opportunity has to make sure, “look coach keep me in” and those boys will get the same loyalty as the boys that are in just now getting and that’s how it’s going to be.”
“There’s no one else who would believe more in me than Gaffer sitting right here”, Farukh on Owen Coyle
Following the injury sustained against Nepal during the 2021 SAFF Championship, Farukh struggled with injuries and missed almost 22 games for Jamshedpur FC during that season. Owen had departed Jamshedpur by the time he had returned again, and he was also unable to earn a steady run of games with the team. Farukh then joined Chennaiyin FC last year, reuniting with previous head coach Coyle. He had a mixed season last year, putting on both strong and weak performances.
He returned to the National Team this year after scoring two goals in the first match against Odisha. In addition to the comeback, he scored an important goal against Vietnam. Regarding his comeback, he discussed the confidence and the work Coyle has done in the background to raise his level of play. Farukh added, “I’ve waited long enough and I knew that eventually I’m going to get a chance (in the National team) and there’s no one else who would believe more in me than Gaffer sitting right here, because from the time I was out, he’s always rooting for me.”
“So it felt really good to go there firstly and then to actually get a goal in a game and we drew that game. It feels good. I would say that goal gave me a little bit more confidence when it comes to finishing now. So I know that I trust myself more. If I get a chance, I know I can shoot, I can take the ball by myself. So yeah, in that term it has helped me. But other than that, everything is the same, he(Coyle) is always there motivating me, rooting for me. That’s the best thing.”
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