Coach Cleofas bullish about Chennaiyin’s chances in Dev League

CHENNAI: Cleofas, in an interaction with DT Next on Saturday, said that Chennaiyin has pulled out all stops to make a mark in the eight-team competition. “We have been working since November 2021. We began the selection process towards the end of last year. It (selecting the right players) is a long process, right? So, we did it step by step and finalised our squad last month,” Cleofas explained how the CFC technical team put the pieces together.

“We then played about 15 practice matches in Chennai. The matches were against university teams, department teams etc. We did not lose even a single match. That is why the confidence level of the players is high. Players being together for months has also helped in boosting the confidence of the group,” added Cleofas, who has been associated with the southern club since 2016.

“Throughout the run-up to the tournament, we identified areas where the players made mistakes. We rectified them one by one. We also worked on our direct play and build-up game. We are confident of finishing at the top of the table,” Cleofas outlined the team’s ambition of winning the Development League that will be played in a round-robin format.

‘Ready to face all challenges’

Tournament organiser Football Sports Development Limited recently announced that the top-two teams in Season 1 will be given an opportunity to participate in the Premier League-hosted Next Gen Cup in the United Kingdom later this year. Cleofas said that the possibility of competing on foreign soil will act as “added motivation” for his team.

“All the clubs will fight for the top-two spots. We are ready to face the challenges that come our way. In general, all the players are excited since this (the Development League) will take place for the first time. The young players could not play many tournaments in the last two years due to the [COVID-19] pandemic. Barring the seniors (first-team members), none of the players have previously played in such a big tournament,” Cleofas signed off.