Virtually out of ISL playoff race, Chennaiyin FC build for Super Cup

CHENNAI: Virtually out of the Indian Super League playoff race, Chennaiyin FC have an eye on the season-ending Super Cup.

The 10th-placed Chennaiyin (21 points from 20 matches) will require nothing less than a miracle – wins in their remaining games and favourable results in fixtures they are not involved – to even stay alive in the ISL top-six battle. So, it is understandable that CFC head coach Owen Coyle has started planning for the Super Cup, a knockout tournament that offers them another opportunity to end the wait for a silverware.

The Super Cup is expected to be hosted from the third week of April. “Whether we have the slightest chance of making the ISL playoffs or not, these are professionals. There is no doubt about the motivation that we have, you saw it last week (Chennaiyin notched up a 3-0 ISL victory over East Bengal FC in Kolkata).

“We want to show that we have good players and a good team. We have to fight till our last breath. There is a Super Cup to be played, so you want to get yourself in the best condition (leading into it),” said Coyle ahead of the ISL clash against Punjab FC, scheduled on Saturday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here.

Coyle stressed that the team is determined to make a “strong finish” to the season. “We have three home games (in the ISL), we want to take one at a time. We want to win the home games; to do that, we have to be at our best. That is what we need to focus on. We have to get the boys back fit and healthy. We have to ensure that the young players play well and take it from there. We have to be more consistent,” added the Scotsman.

Must-win game for Punjab: Punjab, sitting ninth on the ISL table with 24 points off 19 games, will need a win against CFC to improve their playoff chances. Punjab are seven points behind Mumbai City FC, who occupy the sixth and final qualification slot.