The former Wigan boss believes that his side could have scored six goals against ATK…
Chennaiyin FC got back to winning ways as they downed ATK 3-1 at the Salt Lake Stadium on Sunday evening. This was after the Blues only managed to nick a point at home against Bengaluru FC.
Owen Coyle’s team put in a commanding display as they created chances galore in both halves. Had they converted even half the opportunities which came their way, ATK would have conceded a minimum of six goals or so.
“We were outstanding today; from the first to the last person. We made it difficult for ourselves at times when it should’ve been easier. We had so many chances to score goals against a very good side. We knew we had to bring our best game tonight. The first half was the best as I’ve seen of us. Ideally I wanted a pre-season to know the players. I had to assess the squad very quickly coming in.
“Thereafter, we played every game to win. We had to find that attacking threat. I’ve changed the team up to make us positive, when we’re very creative. We tend to be very open when we go to attack. Now we go to Mumbai with confidence. We won’t change. We won’t be playing for a draw against Mumbai. We’ll approach the game accordingly. We enjoy tonight, but from tomorrow morning we must prepare for Mumbai,” said Coyle.
The former Blackburn Rovers coach hailed the performance of his players and mentioned that India coach Igor Stimac too was pleased with the display.
“I have loved every minute of playing with the Indian players. (Anirudh) Thapa was a joy to watch today. ATK was a difficult game, but my players proved their quality today. The players keep giving everything I ask, they keep delivering. They are a joy to work with. They tend to listen. The national team coach was also delighted with our performance.
“After that draw to Bengaluru, we needed this win. We knew we could come here and win. But to do that we had to be at our very best. But we did play scintillating football. We could have scored six-to-seven tonight. We’re doing a lot of things well. I feel there’s more to come for us going forward. We didn’t want our season to fizzle out after a certain point. But we played well and we are confident going against Mumbai.”
The former Blackburn Rovers coach hailed the performance of his players and mentioned that India coach Igor Stimac too was pleased with the display.
“I have loved every minute of playing with the Indian players. (Anirudh) Thapa was a joy to watch today. ATK was a difficult game, but my players proved their quality today. The players keep giving everything I ask, they keep delivering. They are a joy to work with. They tend to listen. The national team coach was also delighted with our performance.
“After that draw to Bengaluru, we needed this win. We knew we could come here and win. But to do that we had to be at our very best. But we did play scintillating football. We could have scored six-to-seven tonight. We’re doing a lot of things well. I feel there’s more to come for us going forward. We didn’t want our season to fizzle out after a certain point. But we played well and we are confident going against Mumbai.”
Coyle pointed that the performance of his full-backs, namely Jerry Lalrinzuala and Laldinliana Renthlei was outstanding as they did a commendable job of stopping ATK’s full-backs.
“I think Jerry was outstanding. Not only defending, but also with the ball he was very good. The most important thing about football is the players. In Jerry and Laldinliana, we had our strengths. They worked very hard to stop ATK’s flow. Jerry and Laldinliana are just getting better all the time. It’s great for the league and for the national team.
“The national coach spoke about Edwin (Vanspaul). He played as full-back but I recognized his threat centrally as he has quick feet. You need to have quick feet to play in the middle. His energy levels were amazing today and that’s why I took him off. I demand our players to be physically and mentally exhausted at the end and he showed that today. Long may his good form continue,” said Coyle.
Chennaiyin FC are up against Mumbai City FC at the Andheri Sports Complex on Friday.
Be the first to comment