Ahead of the Central Coast Mariners first home game of the Hyundai A-League season, Kalifa Cissé says nothing will distract his side from their aim to claim three points. Kick-off is 5:35pm on Saturday night at Central Coast Stadium.
Cissé’s first Hyundai A-League outing on Saturday night against Brisbane Roar saw him earn a spot in the league’s team of the week and was narrowly denied his maiden goal by the off-side flag.
This Saturday night, we’re back in action at Central Coast Stadium and the experienced defensive rock is confident that the Yellow & Navy will put in a strong showing at home.
Thoughts on your first Hyundai A-League outing…
“Look, it was a tough tough first outing,” Cissé said. “But it was great to finally start the season after a long pre-season and it was good to get a decent start.
“Defensively I think we did OK and we were happy with how we worked across the backline,” Cissé said.
Mariners fan base will support us no matter what…
“We have a passionate supporter base and a lot of them have been with us since day one,” Cissé said. “If he [Usain Bolt] is here or not we know that our fans will be here. We need to perform, we need to perform well and make them want to come and see us and support us.
“Maybe a lot of people wanted to see him but first the football fans, the proper football fans, will come out to the stadium to support the team and not one player.
“What’s important to me is we’ve got a good group of players, very competitive team in terms of what we are trying to achieve, I don’t think that’s going to affect us,” Cissé said
“Everyone arrived at training today with a smile and looking forward to Saturday’s game.
“Another big game, that’s why we are very, very focused on this game and we will not let anything outside of this distract us,” Cissé said.
Congrats to our imposing centre-back, Kalifa Cissé who has been named in the @ALeague team of the week! ?
Who’s looking forward to seeing him in action at @CCStadium this Saturday? #CCMFC #ALeague pic.twitter.com/gsUfmFeJJR
— Central Coast Mariners (@CCMariners) October 22, 2018
First home game at Central Coast Stadium…
“This is a big game on Saturday night,” Cissé said. “This is where our focus lies and we will not let anything outside of that get in the way.
“Each game we approach is different – Melbourne City are a very good team, very strong as you saw in the derby on the weekend. We are focusing to ensure we compete as best as we can and get those three points at home,” Cissé said.
Match Details
Saturday, 27 October 2018
Hyundai A-League Round 2
Match: Central Coast Mariners vs. Melbourne City FC
Venue: Central Coast Stadium, Gosford
Kick-off: 5:35pm (AEDT)
TV Broadcast: Live coverage on FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA
Hash-tag: Join the match conversation using #CCMvMCY & #CCMFC
