ISL 2016: Hosts seek turnaround in fortunes

Casting a glance at the ISL points table, ahead of Chennaiyin FC’s match against Mumbai City FC on Wednesday, may not be much help in a stocktaking exercise. If you go by what the numbers say, Chennaiyin fans have cause for a bout of the jitters as they are in a nothing-to-crow-about fifth to their opponents’ occupying the rather exalted second spot.

However, if you look at it more closely, it would reveal that a win for the home team — who have played a game less than Mumbai — by a two-goal margin, would not only enable them to dislodge their higher ranked foes, but also take them to the top of the chart for the first time this season.

But, as the phrase goes, it’s easier said than done, because of the varying levels of confidence that both teams would be carrying into the match.

Not that either the Chennaiyin’s team management or their steadfastly committed fans are unduly fretting over their current slot, as with still eight games remaining, and the way the season has shaped up thus far, teams have been shuffling places with the alacrity of a nomad.

Mumbai, though, would have sound reason to be optimistic of a positive result after their 1-0 away win over current table toppers Atletico de Kolkata. And after a gap of seven days, ample time to strategise apart from resting jaded bodies, they will be chomping at the bit to erase a vastly inferior head-to-head record against the defending champions, which reads, played four and lost four.

What makes that statistic a little more depressing for Mumbai fans is that all those four defeats were not marginal. In the corresponding fixture last season, Chennaiyin galloped to a 3-0 win, but they know very well that it will amount to nothing come kick-off time Wednesday.

Chennaiyin, on the other hand, who earned and enjoyed their first win over NorthEast United FC in the nascent history of this league, couldn’t build on that path-breaking result and were forced to settle for a share of the points against both FC Pune City and Kerala Blasters.

Captain Bernard Mendy, among a handful of others, was the brightest star to have shone on the night of Diwali, and he will be entrusted with the none-too-pleasing-a-task of snuffing out the threat of Mumbai City’s marquee player and the goal-scorer in their last match, Diego Forlan.

The visitor’s goalkeeper Albino Gomes has been an assured presence at the back when he single-handedly defied multiple goal-scoring designs of Iain Hume.

A fifth win on the bounce for Chennaiyin against Mumbai City will, apart from making their fans go berserk, help their blue-chip stock soar up the table.