MUMBAI: Mumbai FC take on Aizawl FC in the 11th round of the Hero I-League the Cooperage stadium today evening. The newcomers shocked Khalid Jamil’s men in the reverse fixture ten days ago in their backyard. Mumbai FC would be hoping to settle the scores with the Mizoram side as they seek their first win the competition for over a month.
Khalid Jamil believes that although the team is heavily depleted with four key players still recuperating from injuries, they stand a good chance to win against the Mizoram outfit. Mumbai FC skipper Taisuke Matsugae, defenders Minchol Son, Allan Dias and midfielder Arata Izumi are still recovering from their injuries and are not match fit.
However, they are not ruled out for the game as Jamil said that he would assess their fitness on Wednesday morning before taking the final call.
“In the last game against Sporting Clube de Goa we missed them. Still we played well and managed to get a decent result. Now we have to think positive about the next match. Boys have to be more disciplined and play according to the plans and go all out for a win,” Jamil mentioned during the pre-match briefing on Tuesday evening.
He further added, “In the previous meeting, we took them a bit lightly, especially in the second half and we had to pay a heavy price. But this time, we cannot make the same mistakes, we have to be tighter and try to win the game as we need the three points."
Aizawl coach Jahar Das also reiterated whatever Jamil stated, “I can clearly state that Mumbai were a bit complacent against us. That gave us a chance to penetrate their defence. But this time it would certainly be different and I expect a stiffer and stronger challenge.”
Jahar Das also mentioned that it is the best time to play against Mumbai FC, all thanks to the dents caused by the injuries. “With the Mumbai team down with injuries it’s definitely the best time to play them. But it always does not work that way. In the previous game Bengaluru, too, we faced a similar situation, but we could not capitalize and instead went on to concede a goal lost the game,” he lamented.
Mumbai FC play Aizawl at the Cooperage Stadium today at 7 PM and the Hero I-League battle will be streamed live on I-League.Org.
