Chennaiyin FC Look For Perfect Start Against SC East Bengal

ISL

The two-time champions, Chennaiyin FC will face off against one of the most prestigious clubs in India, SC East Bengal, in Hero Indian Super League (ISL) at Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco da Gama, Goa on Friday.

Chennaiyin FC have maximum points from their first two matches of the season, and only Odisha FC are the team that has a similarly perfect record.

The club seemed to have found the right balance under their new head coach Bozidar Bandovic, while their opponents, SC East Bengal, are winless in three games and have conceded 10 goals in the campaign so far.

Can ChennaiyinFC maintain their perfect start or will SC East Bengal get their act together?

Form Guide

Chennaiyin FC

Chennaiyin FC have won both their opening fixtures. In the first match, CFC defeated Hyderabad FC 1-0. In the next match, they again pulled off a narrow 2-1 victory over NorthEast United.

SC East Bengal

SC East Bengal have struggled since their draw against Jamshedpur FC in the opening match. In the following matches they lost the Kolkata derby 3-0 against ATK Mohun Bagan and 6-4 versus Odisha FC.

Team News 

Chennaiyin FC 

Rafael Crivellaro is still injured but the rest of the squad is fit to feature against SCEB.

SC East Bengal

In the official pre-match conference, coach Diaz revealed that Arindam Bhattacharja and Jackichand Singh are still recovering with the medical team and are not sure when the two would be able to return. He added that Sourav Das is training with the team now and will return to action soon. The coach also suggested that Adil Khan might start against CFC.

Key Players

Chennaiyin FC 

Anirudh Thapa: The captain was impressive in the last match. The box-to-box midfielder scored a goal in the 2-1 win. The 23-year-old has six tackles and four blocks in two appearances this season. Thapa has been one of the most important players for CFC over the years. Now, with the captain’s armband he would be a leader in the dressing room.

Vladimir Koman: The 32-year-old has been the source of creativity for Chennaiyin FC. He scored the winner in the first match and created five chances in the second fixture.

SC East Bengal

Daniel Chukwu: The striker scored a brace and had four shots at goal in the 30 minutes cameo role in the last match. Having sat on the bench in the last two games, the Nigerian has made a strong case for his return to the starting lineup. The 30-year-old has more than 100 appearances for FK Molde, which makes him vital to SC East Bengal’s performance this season.

Antonio Perosevic: The Croatian has been extremely dangerous on the ball. The winger assisted the Franjo Prce goal in the opening match. He has had eight shots at goal in three matches.

Key Stats

Clean Sheets Problem, No Problem

SC East Bengal are without a clean sheet in their last eight Hero ISL matches. Their last clean sheet came against Chennaiyin FC in the previous season when the match ended in a 0-0 draw. This season they have conceded the most number of goals in comparison to the other clubs, five from open play and five from set-pieces

Their counterparts, however, are yet to concede a goal from open play and have conceded the least number of goals in the league this season.

Will someone grab the Three points This Time Around?

The two times these two sides have faced each other, neither of them have gone home with three points. Both the matches last season ended in draw.

Match Timings 

Match: Chennaiyin FC vs SC East Bengal

Date: 3 December 2021

Venue: Tilak Maidan Stadium, Vasco da Gama, Goa

Kick-off time: 7.30 pm