ISL 2025-26: Chennaiyin and Inter Kashi clash in search of attacking problems

Chennaiyin FC and Inter Kashi will only survive in their minds when they meet in the 2025-26 Indian Super League (ISL) season at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai on Tuesday.

The teams are level on five points apiece, with CFC in 10th place, one spot ahead of the upcoming opponent and a gap away from the leaders of the 14-team table.

All hope is not lost for the two-time ISL champions as the side are unbeaten in three consecutive matches in the competition, with only a late header from Sandesh Jhingan in the previous match against FC Goa denying the side a first home win of the season.

Ahead of the match, CFC head coach Clifford Miranda said he wants his side to match their first-half performance against Gaurs on Tuesday.

«We were very good with the ball. I felt we had big chances, and in the second half we were unlucky not to score,» Miranda said.

«In the last five minutes, when we started making some changes, we lost some momentum. We had to make those changes because my players were getting tired. I think we were in control for most of the game. (Against Inter Kashi) I expect us to do what we did in the first half, for the 90 minutes,» he added.

But despite all the control, CFC’s problems this season have stemmed from an inability to consistently find the back of the net, scoring just three times in five games, the joint fewest in the current campaign.

The new attacking recruits, Inigo Martin and Alberto Noguera, have failed to make an impact so far with zero goals. Furthermore, Daniel Chima Chukwu’s availability is still uncertain after he was forced off the field with an injury in the previous match.

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However, the arms up front have promoted former Punjab FC midfielder Maheson Singh Tongbram to the starting eleven in recent matches, with Miranda calling the 21-year-old the “best Indian number 10” at the moment.

Although he has played combinations in attack, the centre-back of Pritam Kotal and Elsinho, along with Laldinliana Renthlei and Mandar Rao Desai at wing-backs, is a constant for Miranda, who expects a full attack from Kashi.

The Antonio Lopez Habas-led side will be desperate to make a stronger change in direction in his debut season after losing three on the trot, against Jamshedpur, Mumbai City and Bengaluru, who are all currently in the top four. The problems are similar to those of the opposition, with foreign signings Nauris Petkevicius and Alfred Planas each scoring just once in five starts combined this season.

But Miranda, who briefly worked under Habas at ATK in 2016, predicts the Spaniard will “prepare his team in a very direct way.”

«It will be even more because they have lost points. He will motivate his team to come forward and be very, very hard against us. It is his mentality. So we will have to be focused from the first minute until the final whistle,» he added.

Moreover, the condition of the pitch in Chennai has been under scrutiny even before the tournament, and Miranda said that while the groundsmen have done a good job, it is still not up to scratch.

«It’s not at the level of what I had seen when I came here with different teams as a coach and also as a player. The surface is a bit soft and that affects us more because we like to keep the ball on the ground. Not so much for a team that plays directly,» he noted.

With neither side yet to produce a memorable performance this season, the first match after the international break could be the platform for both teams to allay any concerns about a drop back to the second tier.

Published on April 6, 2026