Jamshedpur FC

Unbeaten at home… now that’s a streak the squad would like to continue with.  

Despite the last draw against Kerala Blasters FC, Jamshedpur FC is pumped up and ready to face Mumbai City FC. With a win over Bengaluru FC in their last game, the Islanders are confident and ready to face the home team at The Furnace where they will look to remain unbeaten away from home. Having won three out of the four matches played against the Islanders, Coach Antonio and his men will be determined to keep the numbers unchanged.

In the #JFCMCFC pre-match press conference, here’s what the head coach had to share…

Thoughts on the Jamshedpur FC's defensive performance (in the second half).

It's more about pressure in the last minutes I believe (conceding late goals). You try to maintain the scoreline but then sometimes, the team struggles to keep up with the pressure. Then again, these things happen and we are not worried. However, we have taken note of it. Moreover, it is happening not only to us. It's a regular occurrence in the League (ISL). We have to learn to handle the pressure – not only us but all the teams.

Thoughts on Sumeet Passi and Farukh Choudhary’s performances in this season so far.

Maybe he (Sumeet Passi) is lacking goals at the moment, but he’s a young, intelligent player, who understands what we want from him. Maybe it isn’t outright there but we can feel it during training and in the matches.

We have tried all the strikers in the squad in the last few games. Some of them are in the playing XI, some have just come off the bench, but all of them have played matches one way or another. You have to think more than just scoring goals when you make the squad. You not only talk about the offensive part of the game, but you also talk about the defence. Aniket (Jadhav), for example, is a great young player and he keeps improving. Yes, sometimes he lacks concentration, but you can expect him at his best today and then at his worst the next day. So he is working on that.

Injury update on Sergio Castel.

He is not ready yet. The doctors are doing their best to help him recover, as soon as they can. Hopefully, he will come back soon. He is very important to us.

Thoughts about tomorrow's match against Mumbai City FC.

Of course, we only have one goal, to focus on winning. That's the plan. What we are trying to do is work in two different ways - first of all, we have to identify their weaknesses, the strong points of the opponent, deep dive into it and try to create situations out of them. We have to focus on our play too, be our best, do our best.

Apart from Sergio Castel, any other injury concerns.

Amarjit (Singh) is getting better. He is now training with the team. However, he is still working on getting better, not only physically but mentally as well. He has to recover his confidence and be strong enough mentally, to play a competitive match. Every day he gets a little better and we cannot ask for more. 

Narender Gahlot was in attendance at the press conference as well and talked about his style of play. 

The youngster said, “I think the team got a little overconfident over the second half of the game (vs Kerala Blasters FC) after scoring two goals and lost focus. KBFC made the most of the situation and came on strong which is how they managed to score a late equaliser,” on being asked about the match against Kerala Blasters FC.

Talking about his journey in the Indian Super League with Jamshedpur FC, so far, the defender expressed, “We will have to focus and make sure we win the matches. Of course, it is better to gain one point than lose the game, but it is important that we win the upcoming matches.”

What are your thoughts on #JFCMCFC? Let us know in the comments section below...