ISL 2020-21: Should other ISL teams follow the lead of Chennaiyin FC’s high-intensity football?

The runners-up of the 2019-20 Indian Super League (ISL) season, Chennaiyin FC got off to a bright start against Jamshedpur FC by registering a 2-1 win on Tuesday. Two first-half goals from the impressive Anirudh Thapa and Esmael Goncalves drove the team to a comfortable victory even though they had plenty of chances to extend the lead.

The win came through a very fast start from Chennaiyin FC as Anirudh Thapa slotted the ball past a diving TP Rehenesh to put the side in the lead after just 52 seconds. The team’s skipper Rafael Crivellaro picked up Esmael on the right wing after which the Guinea-Bissau forward came up with a low cross to the box. The ‘boy wonder’ Thapa then made a late run into the box and comfortably found the bottom right corner.

Even after this goal, Chennaiyin FC, who are also known as the Marina Machans, continued to be on the front foot and kept on attacking. In fact, Esmael, who is better known as Isma, went on a solo run in the 10th minute but he couldn’t finish off the chance.

Thereafter, Crivellaro released Lallianzuala Chhangte on the left flank but the Mizo winger failed to find the back of the net. A few minutes later, Chennaiyin FC doubled their lead after Chhangte was brought down by Isaac Vanmalsawma in the box. Expectedly, Isma took the resultant penalty in a confident manner as his team ran amok.

In the latter stages of the first half, Jamshedpur got some grip on the contest and cut Chennaiyin FC’s lead by half through a fantastic header from Nerijus Valskis. However, Chennaiyin FC came out on top in the second half too with some clever moves.

It came as no surprise that players from both the sides got tired as the match dragged on but Chennaiyin FC’s players looked the fittest lot out of all the sides who have played this season.

Anirudh Thapa worked hard even after scoring the early goal. Courtesy: ISL

This was evident from the fact that Isma continued to be a menace till he was substituted off in the 85th minute. Playing as a right winger, Isma constantly troubled the Jamshedpur left-back with his physicality and pace.

The midfield duo of Anirudh Thapa and Deepak Tangri also worked their socks off to restrict the opportunities provided to Nerijus Valskis. The substitute Rahim Ali also brought a lot of energy and helped create some chances for Chhangte but the winger didn’t bury those opportunities. The truth was that Chennaiyin FC could have easily won this match by a 4-1 or 5-1 margin. It reflects the number of chances that were created by the winning side.

Chennaiyin FC were even denied a legitimate penalty in the 63rd minute when Stephen Eze brought down Jakub Sylvestr in the box. The intensity of the Marina Machans’ game ensured that the Jamshedpur FC players were drained out even more. This ensured that there was plenty of space especially on the wings for Chennaiyin FC to attack.

Other teams could take a leaf out of Chennaiyin FC's book

Such type of high-intensity football requires really fit players and CFC surprisingly had those energy levels to continue attacking. This came out of the blue given the short pre-season that all the sides had due to the pandemic.

Some teams might not be able to execute such football due to injuries or lack of training sessions but this could be a huge advantage against opponents who aren’t ready. Several players might also be more concerned about avoiding injuries as the schedule is packed. However, teams like ATK Mohun Bagan or Bengaluru FC could try to replicate this as they have the depth and variety of players.

If Chennaiyin FC alone continue to play like this, they could create a gap between themselves and the other sides. Their coach Csaba Laszlo also intended to continue with high-intensity football.

"I also have my stuff and my knowledge about football, I want even more intensity because it is just the beginning, it is important to use your knowledge and your head and this was also important for me to come with my stuff. In Indian football, we need knowledge from the staff members," said Chennaiyin FC coach Csaba Laszlo.

With Chennaiyin FC’s mindset being pretty clear, it will be interesting to see whether other sides follow suit. A quick start to a match or a persistent side who can attack for 90 minutes or at least majority of the time will definitely go in with a huge advantage. Even in the last ISL, we saw many early goals or mistakes just before the half or full-time breaks. With the pace of the league increasing with every season, this has become a very important reason for success.