BENGALURU: Coming from the setback in the previous round, Bengaluru FC host DSK Shivajians today in Round 7 of the Hero I-League at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru.

Bengaluru FC suffered a 1-2 loss to 10-man Sporting Clube de Goa at home last Saturday. DSK Shivajians, the new entrants in the Hero I-League, are in the 8th position after their humongous win against Mumbai FC in the Maharashtra derby at the Balewadi Stadium last Sunday.

Steelmen’s midfield looked unstable in the previous round and the linchpin, Eugenson Lyngdoh is out for five weeks owing to a hairline fracture. Michael Collins, who debuted for the Blues last day, have to shoulder lots of responsibilities tomorrow.

“We are building the team and we’re yet to get the best combination,” points Pereira. The team from Pune have scored only one goal so far from 5 matches. Forwards’ inability to convert goals is a matter of concern for Derrick Pereira.

Bengaluru FC Gaffer is concerned about the debutants, “Derrick Pereira is an experienced person in the fray, tomorrow's match will be a tough game for us. They have a few good foreigners in the likes of Douhou Pierre and Zohib Amiri who got loads of experience playing in India.” He further adds, “We have seen their game and done our homework.”

Medio Shankar Sampingiraj, who had a brilliant game against Kingfisher East Bengal, had to sit out in the last match. Coach clarifies, “Shankar was physically stressed after a great game against Kingfisher East Bengal. In our last game against Sporting, we fielded the best team. We have to play 3 games in 7 days. It is not possible to play the same 11 players for all the matches.”

Bengaluru FC would be looking to make amends before they clash with the current Hero I-League champions Mohun Bagan on Saturday.