Gokulam Kerala FC is ready for the home match against Chennai City FC
Calicut: After almost 5
years, Hero I-League is all set to return to Kozhikode as Gokulam Kerala FC
(GKFC) take on Chennai City FC (CCFC) at the JLN Stadium in Calicut on Monday
(December 4, 2017).
Both the teams face each
other after their losing their opening match. Gokulam Kerala FC lost to
Shillong Lajong FC in a gritty match, 0-1, while Indian Arrows, the AIFF’s
development team, humiliated a sorry Chennai City FC, 3-0.
However, the home side
is upbeat about their chances and confidence runs high among the players. “This
is our first home match. It is always great to play here. I was along with the
Viva Kerala team, the previous I-League club from Kerala, and a return to the
venue is an unforgettable experience,” said Bino George, the coach of the GKFC.
They had put up a decent
performance against Shillong Lajong FC and Bino is expecting his players to pep
up the show during their home opener. “We had a hostile weather but the boys
did well. We could have won the match had we not lost several of our chances. I
have worked on more on this problem and I hope the match would become a treat
for the spectators,” he said.
GKFC’s Nigerian defender
Chigozie would miss the match as he has injured his hamstring in the first
match. “We need to be more compact in defence and midfield. The unavailability
of Chigozie is a loss but not a major concern as we have players to replace
him,” he added.
Meanwhile, Chennai City
FC are trying to recoup from a humiliating loss against Indian Arrows. The club
from Tamil Nadu need to fix its porous defence that let three goals in the
opener.
The club coach admitted
that the players are lacking experience in the top flight. “Only three players
have played top-tier football in the team. It will be a hard match against
Gokulam at their home. We will try our best to not lose the match and save at
least a point from the away game,” said Soundrarajan, the coach of CCFC.
The match is scheduled
to kick-off at 08:00 PM and it’ll be telecast live on Star Sports 2, Star
Sports HD 2 and streamed live on Hotstar and Jio TV.