"We've shown in our time in India that we don't have to have the biggest budget in the league to be champions" - New Chennaiyin FC manager Owen Coyle
Newly appointed Chennaiyin FC manager Owen Coyle reckons the club have an exciting crop of young talent to build around. He also feels that nurturing those youngsters can help them compete with the best teams in the Indian Super League (ISL) even if they don't boast a similar budget.
Chennaiyin announced Coyle's return to the club on July 16. He has signed a multi-year deal with the Marina Machans, who he managed in the second half of the 2019-20 ISL season.
Under him, the team, led by the likes of Anirudh Thapa, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rafael Crivellaro and Nerijus Valskis, went from eighth place in the standings to the ISL final. They lost 3-1 to the now defunct ATK in the summit clash.
This time, Coyle returns to a very different set-up. Rahim Ali is the only player still at Chennaiyin from his previous tenure, while the squad is filled with talented youngsters who have little experience at the highest level. In fact, barring Ali, none of the players in the current squad made it to India's recent squad.
During an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, Coyle was asked if getting some of these young players into the national team set-up is one of his goals. He replied:
"That's a brilliant question, and the answer is, yeah 100%. "You mentioned some young talent, and we'll look to build that team. We're excited by that."
The Scottish tactician went on to indicate that some clubs in the ISL hold plenty of financial muscle, enabling them to sign players for massive amounts of money.
Mumbai City FC and Mohun Bagan Super Giant have notably made a splash in this transfer window, attracting some major names. While the former signed Akash Mishra from Hyderabad FC, Mohun Bagan prised away Thapa from Chennaiyin.
Coyle, though, remains bullish that he and his staff can make the Marina Machans fight the cash-rich teams for a playoff spot.
"You look at the league and some of the clubs, I understand why they're able to buy the Thapas and Mishras and sign big players. Good luck to them, but we've shown in our time in India that we don't have to have the biggest budget in the league to be champions," Owen Coyle said.
He was referring to his stint with Jamshedpur FC, whom he led to the ISL Shield with 43 points from 20 games during the 2021-22 season.
"The players we gave second chances to - Boris (Singh), Ritwik (Das), TP (Rehenesh), an unbelievable goalkeeper for me, and these boys. It's not always the biggest and best that go on win, so we have to make sure we are the very best version of what we can do at Chennaiyin."
Owen Coyle concluded that getting his players into the national Indian team is certainly one of his goals.
"The bottomline is yeah, we want to grow and develop young Indian talents to help the national team. Because as a coach, it's not just doing my job at Chennaiyin, but while we're doing that, we want to help and promote Indian football and the young Indian players. That's always the key driving point for me," Coyle said.
"It was me who got involved to get those boys over the line" - Owen Coyle on Chennaiyin FC signing Farukh Choudhary and Jordan Murray
Chennaiyin FC have undergone a squad overhaul this summer. Apart from parting ways with their foreign contingent from last season, they have also lost Anirudh Thapa, Edwin Vanspaul and Prasanth Karuthadathkuni. Narayan Das is reported to be on his way out, too.
They have in turn brought in eight players already this summer. Two of them - Farukh Choudhary and Jordan Murray - particularly stood out as they had both won the 2021-22 ISL Shield with Jamshedpur FC under Owen Coyle.
During his interview with Sportskeeda, Coyle confirmed that both players were his signings due to his prior experience working with them.
"Obviously, Jordan and Farukh - I signed them. It was me who got involved to get those boys over the line because they've worked with me, and I know their qualities," Owen Coyle said.
He praised Choudhary's commitment, adding that he hopes to improve Rahim Ali, who has struggled for Chennaiyin and India recently:
"Farukh's been a national team player; he got injured playing for his country, so much of sacrifice and picked up a bad injury. So Farukh will be brilliant for me, Jordan I know. Rahim (Ali) is already there. He will get better and better under our tutelage as well."
According to the statement announcing his arrival, Owen Coyle will join Chennaiyin FC only in August after fulfilling his obligations with Queens Park FC, who he managed last season.
The Marina Machans have been training under assistant coach Raman Vijayan so far. They play their first pre-season game against Kalighat Sports Lovers Association in Kolkata on Wednesday (July 19).