CHENNAI: Chennaiyin FC have suffered a massive blow as their in-form Abdenasser El Khayati has been ruled out of the match against Mumbai City FC on Saturday owing to an injury. El Khayati has contributed immensely and left a great impression with his performance for Chennaiyin this season. The Dutch midfielder, who is playing in the ISL for the first time, is the leading goal-scorer in the season with seven goals so far.
"He (El Khayati) was in very good shape. But now we have to see how we can face Mumbai City with those players who are fit. I'm happy that Anirudh (Thapa) and Jiteshwor (Singh) are fit. They have invested a lot to bounce back into the squad. We have to look ahead and be confident that we can catch points in Mumbai," Brdaric said.
Chennaiyin will try to erase the memory of 2-6 drubbing at home and make a turnaround against a rampaging Mumbai City, who are sitting pretty with 28 points from 10 games. Chennaiyin, who are struggling to get into playoffs contention, occupy the seventh spot in the league table. They could only win two matches in the last five games, which include a stunning 7-3 away victory against NorthEast United last week.
Thomas Brdaric's side comes into this game following a 1-1 draw against Kerala Blasters at home. The two-time ISL champions have a herculean task ahead in the second half of the season as they will have to close five points gap with Odisha FC if they want to move up one place in the chart.
On the other hand, Des Buckingham's men have remained unbeaten in the on-going season, registering seven victories and three draws in 10 matches. Mumbai are coming into this match after a comfortable 3-0 away win over East Bengal last week.
Chennaiyin have been one of the most unpredictable sides in the league this season. Brdaric's boys have shown sparks of their potential, but inconsistency has affected their campaign so far. Brdaric will have to ensure that his boys perform more consistently in the next half of the season to enter the playoffs.
Taking on Mumbai at home won't be easy for Chennaiyin and their striker Petar Sliskovic is aware of this. According to Sliskovic, the Marina Machans, will be eager to score full points to move up the league table and boost their chances for the last-four berth.
"We're aware of the strengths of Mumbai City. They are favourites but we want to go there and take points. They use opportunities and exploit them very well. That's why we want to go there and try to break down what they do with their strengths. We have to be very careful. We have to face them very aggressively and not allow them to exploit opportunities. Our objective is to create chances. In the last match, we came in position but unfortunately, we missed good opportunities. In football, if you take your chances and score, you're at an advantage," Sliskovic said.
