The equation is simple. Win and proceed to the next two games with form and confidence on their back, lose and make life extra difficult for themselves. Jamshedpur FC take on FC Pune City at the Furnace tomorrow with their eyes fixated on nothing else than three points.
Standing in front of them will be the Stallions who have had a resurgence of their own under Phil Brown. Unbeaten in their last four games, Pune will pose a stern challenge for the home side with their attack clicking under the new manager.
Talking on his opponents for tomorrow, Cesar Ferrando said, "I think Pune is a good team. Out of the last four matches, they won three and drew one. I think our defence have to be very focused. Marcelinho and a few other players play counter-attacking football sometimes."
Ferrando also talked about what his side need to do to halt Pune's threat. He said, "You lose the ball, you have to stop the counter-attack and then focus on the players. You need to know where they are and stop them. Tomorrow we can’t allow mistakes if we want to win."
On the injuries front, Jamshedpur FC will be without the services of Tim Cahill who is nursing a hand injury. Carlos Calvo is back after serving his suspension whereas Michael Soosairaj has resumed training with the squad. Ferrando quipped on the players' availability, "Carlos has a chance to be able to play tomorrow. Soosairaj is 50% fit, I think he can play on the bench and he can help us. At this moment I have to decide if they are ready for tomorrow."
Jamshedpur FC can close the gap to 1 point to Mumbai City FC who sit fourth in the league table. Talking on how his side is preparing for the remainder of the crunch season, the boss said, "What we know for sure is that we have to win tomorrow, if we want to be in the top four. The pressure in football to want to improve is always there. You always play under pressure if you want to score more goals. The team is working very hard and very well and we are ready to win tomorrow for sure."
An action-packed encounter is on the horizon at the Furnace with the home side desperate to go on a winning run whereas the away side looking to continue a good string of performances that they have managed in the business end of the season.
