Mohun Bagan and Mumbai FC go into the Round IV match in the I-League football championship after both the teams were summarily trampled in the last round by their respective opponents making this meeting crucial in terms of gaining back confidence.
Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan, who currently are on third spot, lost to Dempo SC 0-5 in an away match in Goa, while Mumbai FC let go an early lead they enjoyed till the 69th minute before East Bengal strode through their defence at the Balewadi Sports Complex stadium on Wednesday.
For the Bagan coach Prasanta Banerjee the defeat against Dempo rankle no end, but he wants to forget it as fast as he can and move on.
“We are here to play and win to earn three points. What happened in Goa against Dempo is inexplicable, but under the given situation winning and taking three points against Mumbai FC remains the lone goal for us,” said Banerjee after afternoon training session at the Athletics stadium here.
Brazilian Hudson Silva Lima will be the lone foreign player in the Bagan line-up on the tomorrow.
“We need to strengthen our line-up before the mid-season,” he corroborated.
After three matches, Mumbai FC is lying at 12th position with three points from the season-opening win against Air India.
Dempo SC vs Pailan Arrows: Dempo Sports Club coach Armando Colaco has asked his side not to get carried away by the 5-0 demolition of Mohun Bagan in a previous I-League game.
The favourites grabbed headlines with a comprehensive demolition of Mohun Bagan but coach Colaco now wants his team to keep their feet on the ground as they prepare to tackle Pailan Arrows at the Tilak Maidan in Vasco on Sunday.
“In football, you cannot take anything for granted. We may have defeated Mohun Bagan but Pailan Arrows will provide us stiff competition. These little boys can be dangerous,” warned Colaco.
“I have asked the boys not to be complacent. We need to continue winning and the competition in this year’s league is so stiff that every point, every goal will count,” said the former India coach.
Dempo have had a perfect record in the competition winning all of their three matches, scoring 10 goals and not conceding a single goal. Their rivals on the otherhand have not won a single match in the competition and have generally not lived up to the initial promise when they led Mohun Bagan for close to an hour in the opening match.
“Playing the match at Tilak Maidan will not suit a team like Dempo. It’s a smaller ground and Pailan Arrows will seek to crowd us. We like to use the width of the ground,” said Colaco. Dempo have played all their matches at the Nehru Stadium in Fatorda.
Pailan Arrows are yet to taste win in the league but there is no denying that the visitors have plenty of talent that is waiting to come good. The team’s Goa sojourn haven’t been upto expectations though as they were thrashed 4-0 by Salgaocar.
Kingfisher East Bengal VsShillongLajong: Sunday’s mid table clash between Kingfisher East Bengal and Shillong Lajong promises to be a thriller. Both sides are on four points, with KEB’s noses in front due to a slightly better goal difference.
Following a bumpy start to the season, KEB look’s to be on track after inflicting a 4-1 defeat against Mumbai FC, earning their first away victory in the I league.
The pressure has been lifted off Coach Trevor James Morgan and his squad following their emphatic victory, Morgan explains “The score line does not matter, we could have won by five or even six goals, what is vital are the three points we earned”. Asked about his opponents on Sunday, Morgan adds “I watched Lajong in the Federation Cup semi-finals against Salgaocar, they played some fantastic football. So we need to give them their due respect as I do the same for all the other teams in the league”.
The Kingfisher East Bengal starting eleven will not include star striker Robin Singh, although he is a part of the 18 man squad for the match.
ShillongLajong sits in seventh position on the table, just one below KEB. The newly promoted North East club was unlucky to have come away with no points from their previous encounter against Sporting Clube De Goa (lost 4-3). Lajong have recruited the services of Johnny Menyongar from United Sikkim FC. The Liberian goal poacher, who has plied his trade in the American soccer leagues, will be a key point of focus in Lajong’s attack force. Also the attack will boast Christopher who has joined from Mohammedan Sporting this season. The influential striker was the third highest scorer in last year’s Calcutta Football League.
Both sides would be looking for full points in this clash, since it gives each team a chance to put some distance between each other.
Chirag United Kerala vs Air India: It’s sure there will be a interesting contest at the University Stadium, Trivandrum where Chirag United Kerala FC, in their first home game of the season, will take on Air India FC in the fourth round of the I-League 2011-12 on Sunday.
Both the teams are level on the table with three points from three matches. Chirag Kerala began the season with a win against HAL SC at Bangalore, but it has been the opposite for the away side. Air India began the season on a low note, going down to local rivals Mumbai FC and Churchill Brothers SC in the first two games, but they opened their accounts in style by stunning defending champions Salgaocar SC 3-1 at the Balewadi Sports Complex, Pune.
“We will try our level best to get all the three points from this match. Certainly, we are going out there on Sunday to attack and win the game,” said Chirag's Sri Lankan coach Nizam Packeer Ali. He said he and his team expect Air India to produce a good challenge.
Vineeth CK has been in fine form for Chirag United from the start of the season, scoring the winner against HAL and playing his part well in the other two matches. The team will be hoping to see their Australian forward Michael Matricciani firing in all cylinders at home. The Australian has scored once this season. Meanwhile, Air India will find the solid partnership of Isaac Boakye and Charles Dzisah at the defence hard to break.
The biggest threat for the home team will be former Indian Arrows striker Manandeep Singh, who was on the score sheet twice against Salgaocar last week. The Chirag defence will be on their toes to mark this young forward.
Chirag Kerala will be hoping to begin their I-League campaign at home with a win, while it will be a big confidence booster for Air India if they manage points in back to back matches.
The kicks off is slated for 03:00 PM.
HAL Bangalore vs Churchill Brothers SC: Both the teams HAL Bangalore and Churchill Brothers meet at Round 4 after playing an identical 1-1 draw in the last round. This game at the Bangalore Football Stadium – the second placed team from the top Churchill Brothers battles with second placed team from the bottom HAL.
Churchill Brothers might be losing the services of Brazilian medio Beto, out due to injury, but the foreign duo of Henry Antchouet and Ndubuisi Opara are in good form, and that could be a great worry for the host. Also, worrying for HAL manager Muralidharan is the return of former HAL stalwart Xavier VijayKumar, all set to ply his trade against former team.
Churchill coach Manuel Gomes have sparingly used Xavier in the earlier matches, but he would not risk that this time, especially after someone played 14 glorious seasons for the same team, “Xavier is a smart player, he had a minor injury sometime back, and could not use him as much I would have like to. He is definitely playing tomorrow”, assures Coach Manuel Gomes.
Gomes reckons Airmen as a good team and there’s no scope of taking them lightly. HAL had two good away games, though the results barely resemble the fact. They’ve suffered royally on finishing and the team is eager to display what they are capable of.