Now or never for Kerala and Chennai

While the overwhelming majority of fans inhabiting the football universe would be looking forward to a match in Madrid on Saturday night Chennaiyin’s supporters would be fretting about their team’s result against Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League earlier here on the same day. Although the ISL is not La Liga, football has an enduring ability to invoke a tribal sense of loyalty even in a competition of modest quality.

Chennai and Kochi are not only in south of India; the ISL teams of the two cities are also in the same zone on the table. The importance of Saturday’s match can’t stressed enough for both teams because the losers would be out of the semi-final equation for all practical purposes.

The scenario was different when Blasters last played Chennai here. It was the pulsating second leg of the semi-finals in Season One and the visitors booked a place in the title round after a dramatic late goal. In Season Two, though, the south India derby will be fought to survive in the semi-final race.

There is no surprise in Kerala’s position in the bottom end of table because they had been bedevilled by problems from the start. Blasters were the only team not to travel abroad for pre-season and they axed coach, Peter Taylor, midway through their campaign before losing marquee player, Carlos Marchena, to injury. Needless to say, results haven’t been great.

Under the passionate guidance of Terry Phelan, who replaced Taylor, Kerala have hit the road to recovery instantly. Phelan has overseen two wins, a loss and a draw.

Chennaiyin, on the other hand, can have no excuses for their current plight. A wretched home record has undermined Chennaiyin’s season. Three defeats in four matches here have condemned Marco Materazzi’s team to the foot of the table. One more loss will mean the Italian can start preparations for Season Three if he decides to continue his Indian adventure, that is. Having lost three matches on the trot, Chennaiyin are obligated to go for their opponents’ neck on Saturday.