“Nothing is decided; got loads to do to reach final” – Owen Coyle ahead of semi-final second-leg

Goa, March 7, 2020: Chennaiyin FC take a 4-1 advantage into the Hero Indian Super League semi-final second-leg against FC Goa at the Fatorda Stadium here on Saturday. Head Coach Owen Coyle alongside Maltese forward Andre Schembri addressed the media ahead of an encounter in which Goa are going to throw everything at them in front of a passionate home crowd.

“It’s obviously good to have a 4-1 advantage. We know it’s a very dangerous game. Over the course of 18 games in the league they’ve (FC Goa) been the best. We have huge respect for them. But we have to make sure we see our advantage through. We have to ensure we are at our very best. Then we know we are capable of winning, home or away,” said Coyle.

“Goa have some wonderful players. Their fans will turn up in numbers, they’ll be colorful. It’s set to be a fantastic game. And we are confident in our abilities, confident about our group,” he added.

Owen Coyle and his team are set to give a guard of honor to the hosts for topping the league and attaining the League Winners Shield, but come kick-off it’s expected to be war.

“When the game starts, we’ll be focused on seeing it through to the final. And to do that we’re going to have to be at our best,” the 53-year-old said.

CFC will be aiming to extend their club-record nine-match unbeaten run and making it to a third ISL final in six years. And in the process of qualifying for the semis, the Marina Machans registered maximum points in the last eight league games (20), two more than FC Goa.

It is also the first time CFC are unbeaten five games in a row on the road in the ISL. And a continuation of the trend will be on Coyle’s wishlist in Goa.

“Prior to the Hyderabad game away, we hadn’t won on the road since November 2018. Now we’ve been five games unbeaten on the road. So we come to a difficult venue but one we’re looking forward to. We’ve shown we have different aspects to our play. We have to be focused and try and see ourselves through to the final,” the former Burnley manager said.

CFC have Edwin Vanspaul, Rafael Crivellaro, Lucian Goian and Jerry Lalrinzuala all on a yellow card from the first-leg. If they garner another booking in the second-leg, they stand to miss the final should Chennaiyin qualify.

“The bookings will have no impact on my team selection. The yellow cards count only if we get to the final. These players have always been focused. If they take their eye off the ball now and if we try to save anyone for the final, ultimately we aren’t giving our everything to win this game. And whatever happens after that, that’s the nature of football as we know,” Coyle shared his approach in team selection.

With Goa needing three goals without reply, it promises to be an all-action game from the word go and Coyle plans to meet fire with fire.

“We have a certain style of playing football and we won’t be changing that. We come here with a positive mindset knowing fully well the quality FC Goa have. But we have shown we have an equal goal threat. And Goa have also seen it up close,” he explained the team’s mindset.

With five goals and three assists, Maltese attacker Schembri has contributed immensely to CFC’s revival but his role more often than not flies under the radar. But Coyle gave the former international due credit for selflessly chipping away for the collective goal.

“Andre’s impact on the team has been fantastic. We’re a far better team when he plays. It was evident when we missed him against Bengaluru FC at home and Mumbai City FC away. He’s such a clever footballer. He sacrifices some of his own play for the team and that is a huge quality to have as a professional. He’s held in high esteem by his peers, foreign and Indian. He’s a shining example every day in the training ground and he deserves all the success that comes his way,” Coyle said.

Asked about how Chennaiyin will counter the threat of the likes of Boumous, Bedia and Brandon returning to the fray for Goa, Coyle said, “There’s no doubt it will add to their attacking threat but that being said, we scored four goals and none of those boys play at the back. So we know we can score goals. We’ll obviously have to guard against their threat.”

And when quizzed about how the away goal give Goa hope to overturn the deficit, Coyle agreed completely.

“And after we went 4-0 up, we wanted to preserve the lead. But the away goal gives FC Goa a target and lifeline. And we have to make sure we replicate our performance from the first leg. We’re capable of doing that.”

“Had we come here with no advantage after a tight first leg, we would have still felt good about it because we know we can play on the counter-attack, and FC Goa know too. If we get any loose balls, we can capitalize.”

Coyle reiterated there would be no room for complacency on a tough night at the Fatorda.

“Nothing is decided though, we have got loads of work to do to get to the final and the players know that. There will be no complacency. We have to make sure we bring the things that have got us to where we are right now. We aren’t here because we clicked our fingers and things fell into place. We are here because of a number of small things coming together. That desire, hard work, application, effort, those are basic requirements before the ability kicks in,” he concluded.

Schembri was in an equally determined mood, putting the team’s goal first before anything else.

“I remember in my first few weeks in India, many journalists asked me how many goals I will score. My answer was always that my first aim is to see the team reach it’s target. I still believe in that. I do want to score more goals, but more importantly help the team reach the final,” he said.

When asked what led to the turnaround, that too in this manner, he shared, “A change in management was important for us. A change in philosophy, a change of mindset and most importantly a change of culture within the team. I believe a lot in culture as culture gives you sustainability. And that’s what we’re seeing in our team. We’re seeing positive performances and I hope we will continue.”