They have some really dangerous players, says Mark Jackson ahead of AFC Cup tie against Odisha FC

Central Coast Mariners boss Mark Jackson also shared an important update about two of his key players.

After a statement 4-0 win over Odisha FC at home in the first leg of AFC Cup 2023-24 inter-zonal semi-final, Central Coast Mariners will look to seal another victory in the return leg. The Mariners have travelled all the way to the temple city of Bhubaneswar to play the return leg against the Juggernauts.

It is going to be a crucial fixture for both sides, particularly for the visitors who are eyeing a double over Odisha FC. Ahead of the game, Central Coast Mariners’ head coach Mark Jackson and captain Daniel Vukovic addressed the media and shared their thoughts.

Approach going into the game

Sharing his thoughts ahead of the game, Mark Jackson said that his side’s approach will not change and they’ll treat this game like any other fixture.

“First and foremost, it’s great to be here. We’ve had a great welcome from everybody, so it’s been really good. We don’t change our approach in any game. We were happy with the result in Australia in the first leg, but we know that we have to approach this game like any other game, where we want to go and take the game to the opposition and score goals and also be strong defensively. So, nothing changes for us,” he asserted.

Gameplan

When asked about his team’s gameplan heading into this game, the head coach said that he wants to win every game with his offensive style of play.

“We want to win every game. We want to play our style of football which is attacking football. But as of our recent form, we’ve been really strong defensively as well, so we know if we bring all those elements to our game then we will go through to the next round. If we keep a clean-sheet and then we go out to score goals, we know we’ll be in the next round so that’s our aim for this game,” he quipped.

Thoughts on Odisha FC

The English manager also shared his views on Odisha FC and said that their players can cause a lot of problems, but his side will be motivated to get a positive result against them.

“They’ve got some really dangerous players. They can cause problems with how they move around the pitch, so we have to be ready for that. In the first leg we coped with that very well, but we have to continue that. We know that coming over to Odisha, their fans will be behind the team. We know that Odisha FC are going to be motivated to get the result and we have to match the intensity,” he mentioned.

He also spoke about Odisha FC’s gameplay and said, “How they drop into a line of three sometimes and then move around the pitch – that’s hard to prepare for sometimes when a team is unpredictable in how they move. But we have a solution for that, we have a plan for that and the players have been executing those plans week in, week out back in Australia.”

Team News

While sharing an update on his team, the manager mentioned that two key players have not travelled for this fixture.

“Storm Roux and Jacob Farrell have not travelled with the team. We’re confident of the players who are going to come in. We trust the squad, and those players will come in and fit in nicely,” he revealed.

Daniel Vukovic’s comments 

The Mariners’ skipper Daniel Vukovic also shared his thoughts ahead of the game and said that it is a big one for his team, but they will not change their approach and go all out for the win.

“It’s another big game and the score in Australia doesn’t matter at this point as our coach said. We approach it like every other game and we understand it’s going to be a difficult one. Odisha FC are a good and leading side here in India, so we’re expecting a tough match. But like every game, we will go out to try and win the game and we’re not going to change our approach.

The goalkeeper also said that it won’t be easy for his side as Odisha FC will be around familiar surroundings at home. 

“We don’t change the way that we play. There are certain things that we want to execute in the game that will give us a good chance of winning the game. For us, it’s about winning. We’re not thinking about the previous result. We know it’s going to be a tough game. Odisha FC are going to be stronger playing at home in familiar surroundings. So, it won’t be easy. But we’re looking forward to the challenge tomorrow,” he concluded.

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