Chennai ready to host EB at their new home

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Coimbatore, December 21: The newly shaped Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium of Coimbatore is all set to welcome Hero I-League at its doorstep with Chennai City FC going head to head against the Kolkata giants Kingfisher East Bengal on Friday (December 22).

Speaking ahead of the match East Bengal Head Coach, Khalid Jamil said, "We just want to play our natural game as we have played in all our matches. I never look back into the past and won't do that either. We played positive football in our last game and garnered important three points. The boys are really confident and we are focused on tomorrow's game."

The architect of the last win, Willis Plaza doesn't feel complacent at all and he stresses on the 'team-effort'. "We're really feeling confident, we are in good shape and whether I score or anyone else does, it matters little. The most important thing is the team and to churn out the positive results", the T&T-born striker aired.

On the other hand, the home team coach V Soundarajan coming back from an emphatic win against Churchill Brothers FC Goa showed his concern over the less 'recovery time' following their away fixture.

He said, "We played our last match on 19th while they (East Bengal) played two days before. Then we had to fly back to Coimbatore. It might be a concern for my boys tomorrow", Soundarajan sounded cautious before the Southern outfit goes out on Friday for their first home match of the season.

He didn't mince his words praising the Red & Golds.

"They are a well-organised unit and no one can deny that they're one of the top teams in India. They will surely impose a great challenge for us. On the flipside, it's a great advantage for us to gauge our potential", Chennai City FC coach stressed.

He added, "It's our first home match of the season and incidentally this will be our first time at our new home stadium. Hence, it can be termed as an away fixture for us as well.”

Soosai Raj, who was handed the armband before the season kicked off, said that it's not putting any extra pressure on him on the pitch.

“We go out to play our normal game. I'm immensely proud to wear the armband but frankly saying, it doesn't put any added pressure on me", the creative midfielder stated.

Skipper Soosai Raj added, "Our win came at the right moment. Although we're playing some positive football, results were not coming our way. Finally, we got the win which was long overdue."

Match kicks off at 5:30pm IST

Live on Star Sports 2, 2 HD

Streamed live on Hotstar, Jio TV