OFC vs CFC Match Details
Date: Saturday, 23 September 2023
Time: 17:30 (IST)
Venue: Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar
OFC vs CFC Match Preview
Odisha FC defied all odds by lifting the Super Cup last season after also making it to the playoffs of the ISL. The silverware paired them with an AFC Cup qualification playoff battle with the previous year’s I-League winners Gokulam Kerala FC which they took in both hands to enter the competition for the very first time. A summer squad overhaul which saw big names from the league joining the squad with the appointment of Sergio Lobera in the dugout, the club now dreams of performing well in a season that will be the most important one so far. Lobera had enormous success in his previous roles with FC Goa and Mumbai City FC which Odisha FC now desires. However, the start of it has been a reality check of the calibre of teams the Juggernauts are going to face in the upcoming campaign. Not only in the AFC Cup but also in the biggest ISL, in terms of participating teams, in its tenth season. After all, they lost their AFC Cup opener in the debut game Sergio Lobera for the club to league trophy winners Mohun Bagan Super Giant. Odisha FC will argue going down to 10 men at the stroke of half-time in the 4-0 thrashing opened the floodgates for the opposition. But this is also true they played a set team fresh from a spirited Durand Cup triumph while they are figuring themselves out. Lobera hopes his side take positives from the defeat and not let the score-line down their morale in front of a pivotal ISL season.
Chennaiyin FC too are hoping for a change of fortunes themselves in the new season going through crucial changes in their squad and the management. They have welcomed Owen Coyle back to India for a second spell at the club. The Scottish head coach took Chennaiyin FC to the ISL final in 2020, the last time they made at least the playoff stages. Three eighth-place finishes have followed since with the club unable to match their previous heights again. Therefore, the Marina Machans hope to win titles again with their former boss who in his last appointment in ISL won the Winner’s Shield with Jamshedpur FC in 2022. The Men of Steel also deteriorated the next season after he left to manage Queen's Park FC in his homeland. It showed his mantle which Chennaiyin FC have taken note of. The two-time ISL trophy winners will wish his magic pays off and the club is able to move away from the doldrums. Beginning the season against a solid Odisha FC team, Coyle’s side are aiming for a first victory in this fixture since 2021. They lost their last trip to Kalinga Stadium with Nandha Kumar Sekar scoring a last-minute winner in that 3-2 victory for the home side. It cancelled out Nasser El Kayhayati’s equalizing penalty just a minute ago.
OFC vs CFC Team News
Mourtada Fall was sent off in the AFC Cup opener against Mohun Bagan three days ago but his suspension will not carried forward to the ISL. The team will have less foreigners in the starting eleven that started the continental competition due to four overseas players allowed in the league rather than six. Narender Gahlot and Aniketh Jadav has joined the camp in Asian Games. A look at Odisha FC 2023-24 Full Squad
Chennaiyin FC has no injury or suspension crisis and could hand debuts to new centre-back signing Lazar Cirkovic and midfielder Cristian Battocchio. The Italian will partner with the returning Rafael Crivellaro while the purchased duo from Jamshedpur FC, Jordan Murray and Farukh Choudhary will don new colours. Rahim Ali and Vincy Barreto is with the national team for the Asian Games in China.
OFC vs CFC Predicted Lineup
OFC: Amrinder Singh; Amey Ranawade, Mourada Fall, Thoiba Moirangthem, Sahil Panwar; Issac Vanmalsawma, Ahmed Jahouh, Princeton Rebello; Jerry Mawhmingthanga, Roy Krishna, Diego Mauricio
CFC: Samik Mitra; Ajith Kumar, Bikash Yumnam, Lazar Cirkovic, Aakash Sangwan; Rafael Crivellaro, Cristian Battocchio, Jiteshwor Singh; Alexander Jesuraj, Jordan Murray, Farukh Choudhary
OFC vs CFC Head-to-Head (ISL)
Played - 8
OFC won - 2
Drawn - 4
CFC won - 2
(As Odisha FC)
OFC vs CFC Dream11 Prediction
GK: Amrinder (8)
DEF: Ajith (8), Fall (8.5), Sangwan (8.5)
MID: Jerry (8.5), Jahouh (9), Crivellaro (7), Battocchio (7)
FW: Mauricio (9), Krishna (9), Murray (8)
Vice-captain: Diego Mauricio
Captain: Ahmed Jahouh
