I-League: High-flying Churchill Brothers pose a threat to Aizawl FC

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Vasco, February 6: High-flying Churchill Brothers, who surprised everyone by beating Minerva Punjab FC, have another big task ahead of them in the I-League against defending champions Aizawl FC at the Tilak Maidan in Goa on Tuesday (February 6).

Aizawl, the Paulo Menezes-coached side, come on the back of a stalemate against Chennai City FC. Aizawl have reasons to be worried as they are winless in their last five matches, including the AFC Champions League play-off game against Zob Ahan.

The not-so-decent run of results have seen them slump to a lowly sixth with 16 points and Churchill Brothers are only three points behind the defending champions.

Churchill Brothers are growing in confidence with each passing game and they have targeted a top half finish for the season. After the addition of players like Koffi Mechac, Kalu Ogba, Eldor Hussein and others, the Red Machines look a different unit altogether.

"It is my belief that if we had this whole set of foreigners from the beginning, we could have been among the top two and even heading the league table with some distance. In the initial stages of the season, we lost five matches, which is 15 points. So you see the recovery we had to make from the five defeats," Churchill Brothers coach Alfred Fernandes suggested.

Even Aizawl coach Paulo Meneses agreed that this Churchill Brothers team is not the same as the side they had beaten in the reverse fixture.

"You cannot compare this Churchill Brothers to the one that played in Aizawl with us. They have improved a lot. It will be a very tough game. We are ready to play against them but we know it will be difficult. They are a very competitive team and they are improving. It is not the same Churchill Brothers," Menezes said.

But Alfred Fernandes is prepared to face a backlash from Aizawl after their poor run of form. "That (backlash) is always expected, especially Aizawl being the defending champions. Being in mid-table, they will come out hard against us. Playing out a draw against bottom-placed Chennai City FC must have hurt them a lot. We have to be prepared," Alfred Fernandes said.

Menezes feels that the points table don't justify their performances. "The chances that we create in every game, it was enough to be with much more points. Our problem is to score. Hopefully, we have a better chance," he said.

Churchill Brothers vs Aizawl FC

I-League

Live from Tilak Maidan

At 5.30 pm (Tuesday, February 6)

On Star Sports 2 and Hotstar

Source: AIFF Media