Odisha and Chennai square off in the second leg match of the Indian Football League. Both sides met previously at GMC Stadium, and the match ended in a goalless draw.
Match Timings: Jan 13, 7:30 PM IST
Team Preview
Odisha and Chennai both sides have been poor this season, and they are still taking the spots in the bottom four. Before meeting in the first leg game, Chennai suffered a 4-1 defeat last week. Anirudh Thapa was the only scorer for Chennai. Hyderabad could have scored more, but Vishal Kaith stood against the tight attack. On the other hand, Odisha grabbed its first victory last week against Kerala, thanks to Diego Mauricio’s brace.
Both sides met previously on Sunday and shared the spoils. Chennai had few chances early in the game, but Odisha managed to hold their attack. Odisha created a couple of opportunities, but the shots went offside. Eli Sabia headed over Fatkhulloev’s free-kick to try scoring, but it didn’t happen. In the final few minutes of the first half, Diego Mauricio controlled Odisha’s hope, and Cole Alexander set up for Odisha. Arshdeep also denied Chennai a goal when Sylvestr made a pass to Rahim Ali. Odisha's goalkeeper made another save against Sylvestr’s flicked attempt.
Lallianzuala Chhangte and Jerry Mawihmingthanga both were canceling out each other. The struggle was flowing on both sides, and going into the final minutes, nobody scored a goal. Both teams introduced a few substitutes, and Chennai got a chance with the error from Steven Taylor, but again, it was denied. Odisha would not be delighted with this performance. Baxter didn’t make a change in the winning team, and it also didn’t work out.
Kalinga Warriors had 43% of the possession and took only 3 shots in the match. Meanwhile, Chennai took 11 shots in the game, and 9 of them were off-target. They had better possession in the game. Arshdeep Singh denied Chennai two times, and Marina Machans settled for just one point. Jacob Tratt was terrific on Sunday with managing to hold Lallianzuala Chhangte. He made two successful tackles, five clearances, and four interceptions. The Australian will miss this game after securing the fourth yellow card of the season. Chennai and Odisha both faced off twice last season. The first leg game ended in a 2-2 draw, and the second game was taken by Odisha 2-0.
Possible Lineups & Current Form
Chennai
Vishal Kaith; Reagan Singh, Eli Sabia, Enes Sipovic, Jerry Lalrinzuala; Deepak Tangri, Memo Moura, Anirudh Thapa; Rahim Ali, Jakub Sylvestr, Lallianzuala Chhangte
Current form: L D D W D
Previous match: 4-1 defeat to Hyderabad
Odisha
Arshdeep Singh, Gaurav Bora, Steven Taylor, Hendry Antonay; Jerry Mawihmingthanga, Cole Alexander, Vinit Rai, Nandhakumar Sekar; Manuel Onwu, Diego Mauricio
Current form: W L D L L
Previous match: 4-2 win against Kerala
Key Players
Chennai
Anirudh Thapa
2 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
Jakub Sylvestr
1 goal & 2 assists in Indian Football League 2020-21
Odisha
Steven Taylor
2 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
Diego Mauricio
5 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
