The 12th round I-League match between Viva Kerala and Air India holds special significance for new coach Yusuf Ansari as it would be his first game in-charge on the road. In the three games, he has been at the helm of affairs at Air India, the club has lost twice and won once, and which isn’t a bad record considering the lack of time he has had to work with the boys.
Lying in the 11th spot with eight points, Air India are on a high as they beat Salgaocar SC in their last match which has injected them with confidence.
The Mumbai club reached late in Kozhikode and had a practice session for about an hour or so at the EMS Memorial Stadium on Tuesday.
“The ground is okay. There is grass but it’s a little uneven. It’s like the Cooperage Stadium of Mumbai,” said Yusuf.
The AFC B Licence holder has been giving his bench an opportunity to improve their match fitness by organizing friendlies between I-League games, which also assures the team members of its potential.
“After the loss to Mohun Bagan, I organized two games against Mahindra U-19 and Kenkre Academy. The players won the two games and it helped their confidence. I was advised by Karim Bencherifa that these friendlies help increase the morale of the team.
“We played against RCF and we won by six-to-seven goals. Every player is getting match time,” pointed Yusuf.
Viva Kerala were beaten by Pune FC in their last game, which was played on their home soil. The southern club have no time to mull over the defeat as they have no choice but to rise to the occasion.
“I saw the Viva Kerala side. Going by their body language, I just felt that they are going through a low phase. I believe that if we give our 100%, we can come back with three vital points considering that away matches are always tough,” added Yusuf.
Air India take on Viva Kerala this Thursday.
Source: Goal.com
From the archive. First published on footballkerala.com on Wednesday 27 January 2010, restored from the site's 2012 database. Text as originally published.