Defending champion Aizawl FC will be looking to regain its dominant form when it takes on a resurgent Chennai City FC in an I-League fixture at home at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium on Saturday. Both sides are currently residing in the bottom half of the table but on recent form, the two have shown a notable recovery in the last few rounds.
The Chennai side, which made an unimpressive debut to the elite stage of the tournament last year, has made a spectacular turnaround at the start of the new year. Beginning with a resounding 2-1 win against the four-time champion Mohun Bagan, Chennai City remained unbeaten in the next two matches and picked up a total of five points in the process. Interestingly four of those points came from away engagements on its tour to the East and the North-East. This will remain the source of inspiration for the visitor while facing Aizawl.
Aizawl is also on a comeback trail, winning two of its last three encounters. The host will be looking to regain its winning form after suffering a 0-2 loss while visiting Mohun Bagan in the previous outing.
“Our policy of hunting talents from the rural belts of the state is proving good this season. The meeting with Aizawl will be the penultimate ‘away’ match and we will be trying to pick up most of the points and finish within top-four of the standings,” Chennai City coach V. Soundararajan struck an optimistic note ahead of the match.
Looking to rebuild the side after most of the members of the champion squad left for greener pastures, Aizawls Portuguese head coach Paulo Menezes is reasonably happy with what his troops have managed so far in the season. “My players always bounce back after a bad match and I hope the trend will continue. The young players are doing well but they will have to improve,” he said.
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