What is it about Chennai and its sports franchises that entices both owners and players to the capital of Tamil Nadu? Is it the constant doting or the overwhelming adulation that teams performing in the city receive?
Be it social media or the streets of Chennai, support has never been an issue with the home crowd never shying away from a loud show of support for the home franchise – the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) or Chennaiyin FC.
The teams have repaid their faith handsomely – Chennaiyin were possibly the best team in the Indian Super League across the first two seasons. Over the two seasons, the Super Machans have recorded the most number of wins (15) and scored the most number of goals (59). They have also conceded the least number of goals in the league last season (19).
The gaffer
World Cup and Champions League winning defender Marco Materazzi is one of two coaches along with FC Goa coach Zico to retain charge of the same ISL franchise for three years running.
Materazzi, a combative centre-back most famous for getting head-butted by Zinedine Zidane in the 2006 World Cup final, has brought his fiery nature and grit to the team, making it a tough outfit to break down, especially at the Marina Arena, the home of the champions.
The Italian has also combined the aggressiveness of his playing days with a new-found sense of calm that he seems to have discovered in his time at the ISL club. Never was this more evident than last year’s final against Goa.
When Jofre scored for Goa to make the score 2-1 in favour of the Gaurs in the 87th minute, it seemed that the title had slipped away from Materazzi’s grasp. Virat Kohli, co-owner of the Goa franchise, celebrated wildly and everyone present at the ground must have thought that the game had been won.
Three minutes later, John Stiven Mendoza would force Goa keeper Laximant Kattimani into putting the ball through his own net as Chennaiyin grabbed a late equaliser. Mendoza and the rest of Chennaiyin sprinted down the touchline, but it was surprisingly Materazzi who called for calm and ushered the players back onto the pitch.
Mendoza grabbed another goal in the dying minutes to clinch a famous title for Chennai and Materazzi, in only his second season as a manager.
Mendoza and Elano: Big misses
When the ISL in its inaugural season announced the concept of a marquee player, teams plumped for big names – David Trezeguet, Alessandro Del Piero, Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg – to capture the imagination of the Indian market.
Yet, of all the marquee names in both the editions so far, it can be argued that Elano, signed at a relatively young age of 33, made the biggest impact on the football pitch. In the first season, the World Cup winning Brazilian scored eight goals in his first six matches, was injured for the rest of the campaign and still ended up as the league’s top scorer, winning the ISL Golden Boot in its first season.
Elano’s last match for Chennaiyin may have ended in victory, but the Brazilian was arrested on charges of assault by the Goa police following the final. Predictably, Elano did not return for a third season.
Mendoza, who grabbed his 13th goal of an extraordinary season for the Colombian in the final, also chose to sign for another club and plays for MLS side New York City these days. Mendoza finished as the ISL’s top scorer for 2015 and won the Golden Boot, like Elano before him and also won the 2015 Hero of the League, an award given to the best player in the league.
Between them, Mendoza and Elano notched up 29 of the 59 goals that Chennaiyin have scored in the ISL. Mendoza is the league’s all-time top scorer, with 17 goals to his name, one ahead of Iain Hume.
Stability and consistency the key words for Chennaiyin
In 2014, Chennaiyin finished top of the league table but faltered in the first leg of the semi-finals, going down 3-0 to Kerala Blasters in Kochi, which would ultimately see them knocked out 4-3 on aggregate.
Yet, Chennaiyin recognised the potential of this team and retained nine players – the most of any ISL team – and promptly won the title at the second time of asking. This year, Chennaiyin have retained 15 of their 25-man squad last year, six more than any other team, which clearly shows the confidence that Materazzi and the owners have in last season’s winning squad.
Other teams have followed Chennaiyin’s lead this time and have retained more players than last season – commendable given that all ISL players are on one-year contracts and usually negotiate higher packages in order to be retained.
Chennaiyin’s Indian contingent is one of the primary reasons why it is expected to put up a good show this time. In Jeje Lalpekhlua, they have the next superstar of Indian football and the highest Indian scorer in the history of the league, with 10 goals.
Daniel Lalhlimpuia, Bengaluru FC’s 19-year old striker and arguably the most in-demand young Indian footballer around, will share attacking duties with Jeje, Italian strikers Davide Succi and Maurizio Peluso and India U-19 striker Uttam Rai.
Joining these elite band of forwards will be the wise heads of Indian international Baljit Sahni, and former Goa striker Dudu, who has scored 115 goals in Indian football till date. The forward line is one of the best assembled in the league and will be tough to stop as they will look to run roughshod over opponents.
John Arne Riise, a Champions League winner with Liverpool and 110 caps for the Norway national team to his name, is the team’s marquee player and will spearhead the defence. Riise’s left foot is one of the most feared in international football and should Chennaiyin get a free-kick within range, there is no doubt as to who would head the queue of possible takers.
Riise will be joined by former French international and PSG defender Bernard Mendy, playing his third season at Chennaiyin FC, while Mehrajuddin Wadoo, Abhishek Das, Dhanachandra Singh and Brazilian centre-backs Eder and Eli Sabia will be part of a formidable back line, which will try and replicate the form that saw the champions keep six clean sheets last season. Karanjit Singh, capped 17 times for the Indian national team, will be the man between the sticks as two-time Apoula Edel moved to FC Pune City for this season.
In midfield, Chennnaiyin have retained Manuele Blasi and Raphael Augusto, expected to control proceedings in the middle of the park. Defensive midfielder Dhanpal Ganesh and tough-tackling firefighter Harmanjot Khabra, along with the indefatigable Thoi Singh will also feature for the champions as they look to the opposition back with their pressing.
Overall, Chennaiyin will miss the quality of their top two goalscorers, but can still be expected to dominate teams considering the depth of their squad.
Good teams are not built in a flash, but over a period of years as players gel and recognise each other’s style of play, strengths and weaknesses, and adapt to a team’s philosophy and demands. Chennaiyin have recognised that early and have wisely decided to retain the core of their title-winning squad, setting an example for the rest of the league.
