ISL 2020-21 Preview: Owen Coyle the buzzword as Chennaiyin meets Jamshedpur

ISL 2020: Jamshedpur FC head coach Owen Coyle faces his old team Chennaiyin FC in the fifth match of of ISL 2020-21 on Tuesday.

Jamshedpur FC Owen Coyle is well aware of the strengths and weaknesses of his former team Chennaiyin FC.

Owen Coyle is the buzzword in the build-up to the Indian Super League (ISL) contest between Jamshedpur FC and Chennaiyin FC. A lot has been said about the former Chennaiyin boss’ knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of Tuesday's opposition, when the two teams square off at the Tilak Maidan in Vasco on Tuesday.

Coyle, who masterminded the turnaround from almost a point of no-return to take Chennaiyin to the final of last season, is aware of the task at hand. “We are set for a difficult game against Chennaiyin. They have some very good players, I know them well. But equally, we have some very good players here at Jamshedpur,” said the Scotsman, who joined Jamshedpur on a two-year deal in August.

The new Chennaiyin coach Csaba Laszlo, however, played down the narrative. “Everybody knows everybody... There is no secret in football,” said Laszlo. “If you ask me, I know nearly everything about my opponents. We are prepared. The time was very short and this is a puzzle [match vs Jamshedpur] we have to solve.”

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The long-term puzzle for Laszlo to solve would be to find the missing piece up top in replacing Nerijus Valskis and his 15 goals – all from open play. Valskis will line-up against Chennaiyin after he followed Coyle to Jamshedpur. Laszlo has signed forwards Esmael Goncalves and Jakub Sylvestr as two options to provide the goals.

Last season's Golden Boot winner Nerijus Valskis followed head coach Owen Coyle from Chennaiyin FC to Jamshedpur FC.

 

Due to the shortened pre-season, Laszlo has opted to build on the playing style from Coyle to make a smoother transition. "Last season Chennaiyin played good football. I am not willing to change the style much. We have got new players. But we will be taking a lot of things [from the previous season]. I have my own idea which I want to implement,” said the Romanian.

For Coyle, in what will be his first full season in India, the biggest task will be to maximise the potential of the young Indian players in supporting the experienced overseas signings. “The important part is that our team should provide as many opportunities as possible for the forwards to score the goals. Goalscorers like Nerka [Vaskis] thrive on chances,” he said.

A late call will be taken on the inclusion of Jamshedpur’s forward Nick Fitzgerald (Australia) and defender Stephen Eze (Nigeria), after the duo joined training only last Wednesday.

Chennaiyin with its strength in midfield with Rafael Crivellaro and Anirudh Thapa will slightly have the upper hand in controlling the possession and dictate play. Both coaches share a similar philosophy and approach, which could translate into an evenly-contested game with some end-to-end football.

Match facts

Time: 7.30 pm IST

Venue: Tilak Maidan, Vasco

- THE SQUADS -

Jamshedpur FC:  TP Rehenesh, Pawan Kumar, Niraj Kumar, Raj Mahato, Vishal Yadav, Peter Hartley, Stephen Eze, Narender Gehlot, Joyner Lourenco, Laldinliana Renthlei, Karan Amin, Manash Protim Gogoi, Sandip Mandi, Ricky Lallawmawma, Subhash Barua, Aitor Monroy, Alex Lima, Jackichand Singh, Nicholas Fitzgerald, Issac Vanmalsawma, Amarjit Singh, Mobashir Rahman, Jitendra Singh, Manisana Singh, Harsha Parui, Billu Teli, Gorachand Mardi, Gaurab, Bhupender Singh, Nerijus Valskis, David Grande, Aniket Jadhav, Sapam Kennedy Singh, William Lalnunfela

Chennaiyin FC:  Karanjit Singh, Vishal Kaith, Revanth BY, Samik Mitra, Eli Sabia, Jerry Lalrinzuala, Enes Sipovic, Lalchhuanmawia Fanai, Reagan Singh, Deepak Tangri, Aqib Nawab, Remi Aimol, Ganesan Balaji, Anirudh Thapa, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rafael Crivellaro, Memo Moura, Fatkhullo Fatkhuloev, Edwin Vanspaul, Thoi Singh, Dhanpal Ganesh, Germanpreet Singh, Abhijit Sarkar, Sinivasan Pandiyan, Aman Chetri, Esmael Goncalves, Jakub Sylvestr, Rahim Ali

 

ISL 2020 will be televised live on Star Sports and live streamed on Disney+Hotstar.