Naihati (WB), Mar 11 (Football News) Their campaign off to a disappointing start, both TRAU FC and Churchill Brothers will be eager to put some points on the board when they face each other in the I-League here on Saturday.
Churchill Brothers lost their opening game of the season against defending champions Gokulam Kerala but performed well in the following 2-2 draw with Punjab FC.
However, that was short-lived as they suffered another defeat against Sudeva Delhi in their last match.
“It has not been the best of starts for us and we know we need to show improvements in the next game,” said assistant coach Mateus Costa.
TRAU were the surprise title challengers last time but they have found life difficult this time round. They have managed to score just one goal in their opening three games and picked up a solitary point against Indian Arrows.
“We need to improve in all parts of the field and that is not going to be easy against a strong team like Churchill Brothers,” said head coach L Nandakumar Singh.
It will be a David and Goliath clash when defending champions Gokulam Kerala FC take on newly-promoted Kenkre FC in the other game of the day, to be played at Kalyani stadium.
Gokulam Kerala come into this match on the back of a grand 5-1 victory over Real Kashmir. And Vincenzo Alberto Annese has a clear gameplan in mind in order to defend the crown.
“We want to dominate every team. We want to control the ball and make the other side afraid and frustrated. We want our full-backs to attack more and keep our defensive line high,” he said.
After a 1-1 draw against Real Kashmir, Kenkre were beaten 0-4 by Punjab.
However, coach Akhil Kothari took a lot of positives from that game.
“After conceding three goals in the first half, we played better after the break. We want to improve further and bounce back against Gokulam. The mood in the camp is positive.” The third match of the day will see league leaders Mohammedan Sporting clash with the young guns of Indian Arrows.
The Black and White Brigade side are coming in the match after securing a hat-trick of wins in as many games.
As for the Indian Arrows, they will be high on confidence as well having earned four points from their opening two games.
“We got results in the three matches. However, we have to focus on the next game. Indian Arrows are a good team with quality young players. They play a good brand of football,” Mohammedan Sporting head coach Andrey Chernyshov said.
On the other hand, Indian Arrows head coach Venkatesh Shanmugam said, “We had a 6 or 7 days break ahead of the game. The boys are looking fresh and mentally strong for the next match.
"We have two clean sheets in two games. These points will motivate us to get more points in the coming games."
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News Source : PTI
