Chennaiyin FC, on the back of a home loss in their season opener, will travel to New Delhi to play their second match of the Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2015 against Delhi Dynamos FC. On the eve of their Delhi encounter, assistant coach Vivek Nagul took to answering the questions posed at the pre-match press conference.Clearing the air about Chennaiyin FC’s defensive abilities, Nagul said, “Last year, as well as this year, we did concede quite some goals. We have a new group of people working together this year. We know our mistakes and we’ve been working on it. I’m sure we’ll keep getting better in the upcoming matches.”Season 2014 saw former Italy international Marco Materazzi step up and resume his centre-back responsibilities on the field. Is that bound to happen this year as well? “He will always be in action,” chimed in Nagul, “... from the bench, of course! We’re a team who has always played exciting football. He was instrumental on as well as off the field last year. But this year, he’ll be handling the technical side of things.”With Jeje Lalpekhlua on national duty at the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers, a slight change in tactics is expected. Clarifying on that matter, Nagul said, “That’s a national job [India national team], and we all know that national duty is top priority. We have a talented bunch to play in his place, like Balwant [Singh] and Jayesh Rane. At the moment, we would be using their services.”He also addressed all concerns regarding Fikru, their import from Atlético de Kolkata for this season. “We wanted Fikru to play for the entire stretch. But he was struggling due to [an] injury. Before the match, we were dubious about making him start or send him in the second half. We went ahead with Fikru starting the game, and Mendoza replacing him after 60 minutes. That tactic worked, Fikru and Mendoza did their jobs. Sadly, the final result was a bit unexpected.”“At the moment, we are dealing with some player injuries, something that all teams have to face at some point. Fikru is good to play. Also, we’ll be giving him as much time he needs to get comfortable on the field.” continued Nagul.One thing, however, was clear for the team from Tamil Nadu – they were in no mood to take their foot off the gas. “Take a look at our previous records,” quipped Nagul. “And you’ll see that we have always been scoring goals and been an attacking team all the while. We’ll be working on our flaws, nonetheless, and we’ll develop as the sessions grow. But one thing’s for sure, we won’t be on the defensive.”
