Roberto Carlos is ‘cool’ despite Delhi Dynamos’ 2-0 loss to FC Goa in its first outing of the Indian Super League Season 2.
Ahead of Dynamos’ first home outing against Chennaiyin FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here on Thursday, the Brazilian player-cum-coach must feel comfortable on two counts — the unbeaten record of Dynamos against its rival from deep down south and the overall attacking approach of his side in Margao the other night.
Dynamos takes heart from the fact that it dominated the proceedings against Goa. With 11 shots at the goal, Dynamos players showed that they broadly followed Carlos' philosophy of adopting an attacking approach. A significant difference in possession (Dynamos’ 59 per cent against Goa’s 41) also strongly indicates Dynamos’ control over the match.
However, the errors, including Souvik Chakraborty’s own goal, let the team down.
Carlos was as precise in his analysis as he was with his free-kicks. “We lost because of our mistakes. In a short championship like this, we cannot make many mistakes. When there are individual mistakes, you try harder.”
The Dynamos coach hinted at a bigger role for previous year's hero Gustavo dos Santos.
Dynamos had registered its first ever victory in the ISL by thumping Chennaiyin 4-1 at the sprawling Nehru Stadium last year. In the return leg, it had played a 2-2 draw to remain undefeated.
Carlos rated Chennai highly though. “It is a great team, one of the best. It will be a great match.”
After going down fighting 3-2 to Atletico de Kolkata in a thrilling season opener, Chennaiyin will be more than keen to make amends for the lapses it committed at home and improve upon its record against Dynamos.
Good ball-holding skill (53 per cent) had helped Chennaiyin give Kolkata a run for its money. The visitors will focus on plugging the gaps in its defence even while targeting the rival post.
“We conceded goals. We know our mistakes and are working on those” said Chennaiyin assistant coach Vivek Nagul.
Chennaiyin, nevertheless, has some fitness issues and one of these is related to Fikru, a key component in its attack. How much time he spends on the field will be crucial for the touring side.
Cheanniyin has options in Balwant Singh and Jayesh Rane to fill the void created by hard-working forward Jeje Lalpekhlua, owing to his National duty.
“We will not be defensive,” assured Nagul, promising an entertaining fare.
