Jamshedpur, February 2: Jamshedpur FC head coach Owen Coyle has revealed that his admiration for Madih Talal dates back several seasons, as the creative midfielder continues his recovery and adaptation under the Scot ahead of the new Indian Super League campaign.
Talal, who is working his way back to full fitness after a long injury layoff, had been on Coyle’s radar since his awe-inspiring season with Punjab FC. At the time, Coyle was in charge of Chennaiyin FC and keen to bring the talented midfielder into his setup, but Talal eventually made the move to East Bengal FC instead.
“The first conversation with the coach was at the time when I was playing for Punjab FC and he was with Chennaiyin FC,” Talal said. “He had admiration for my playing style and wanted me at his team. It’s always a good feeling when a coach sees the quality I bring to the team. For various reasons, I didn’t end up in his team that time, but that’s in the past now,” said Madih Talal.
Coyle confirmed that interest, admitting he had been tracking Talal closely during his standout spell with Punjab FC. “I’ve always admired Maddy since he came into the league,” Coyle said. “A fantastic player, natural ability, can beat a man, can score a goal, can create a goal. I tried to sign him before he went to East Bengal, but as with many clubs in the league, everybody was after Maddy because of his performances at Punjab.”
The Jamshedpur FC head coach also acknowledged the setback Talal suffered at East Bengal, where a serious injury stalled his momentum. “At East Bengal he did a terrible, terrible injury,” Coyle said. “That takes time for anybody to come back from. But Maddy’s working really hard in training, and he’s shown some really nice signs of getting back to his top level.”
For Talal, the early days under Coyle have been demanding but encouraging, with clarity slowly emerging around the team’s playing style. “The training has been good so far,” Talal said. “It’s been just more than a week of training with him and we are getting to understand his ideas and the way he wants this team to play. He’s very demanding of the players and that also helps us to push more in training.”
Coyle believes a fully fit Talal could be a key figure in Jamshedpur FC’s attacking setup, particularly in the creative role central to his philosophy. “If we have Maddy at top level fitness, then we have an outstanding player in the league,” he said. “He fits perfectly for what we want to do in that creative role. He’s great on the ball, he has an eye for a pass, and fans will love him.”
Beyond tactics and fitness, Talal is eager to reconnect with the supporters at the Furnace after missing out due to injury. “I am really excited to play in front of the fans at the Furnace,” he said. “Being sidelined with an injury, I miss the feeling of playing in front of fans and I hope like previous seasons, our fans will turn up in numbers to cheer us.”
