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Venue: Jalan Besar Stadium, Singapore
Kickoff: Wednesday, April 2 2014, 17:00 IST
Home Advantage
The 2014 AFC Cup campaign has so far been a disappointment for Home United as they managed just one point from three matches and thus are already on the brink of elimination. Only wins in the remaining three games would guarantee them a place in the round of 16 so they must beat Churchill Brothers. The Singapore Cup winners just couldn’t cope with the hot and humid conditions of Goa on matchday three as despite taking the lead, they were totally outclassed by a side that is struggling to survive in the I-League. It might have been an indication of a drop in the standard of the S-League but to be fair to Home United, they were also badly hit by injuries and only travelled to India with 15 players.
The two-time S-League champions won’t be able to use any such excuses in this game as they are close to full strength again and will also have home advantage. Much like in the past, Home United have made a poor start in the S-League also with just seven points after five matches. But they showed good character to earn a draw against Hougang United in their last domestic league game on Thursday as for the majority of the match they played with ten men. The Protectors have had enough time to prepare for this encounter and will be confident of avenging the loss in Goa. Anything less could see them exit the tournament at the group stage for only the second time in seven appearances.
Welcome Distraction
Photo Credit: Churchill Brothers
Despite saying prior to the tournament that they will prioritise the I-League over the AFC Cup, Churchill Brothers remain on course for a place in the knockouts as they are currently second in the group with six points from three games. The points have come thanks to the home wins over New Radiant and Home United and the Red Machines have also played some attractive attacking football in those two games. What has been noticeable is that Churchill Brothers have played in the AFC Cup without any pressure, much like they did in the Federation Cup back in January. It’s fair to say that their appearance in the AFC Cup has been a welcome distraction from their troubles in the I-League.
With only a month of the domestic season remaining, Churchill Brothers are still unsure about their survival and the latest setback came last Friday as they were thrashed 4-1 by local rivals Dempo. That result has dented the confidence of the squad and thus the coaching staff have their work cut out in lifting the morale ahead of the final few games of the season. One way Churchill could regain their self belief is by getting an away result in the AFC Cup and having comfortably beaten Home United once, the Goan outfit will be confident of producing another strong performance. The I-League holders are missing a few key players and thus won’t be given much of a chance but they still have enough potential to get something from this game, which would enhance their chances of sealing a knockout berth.
Form Guide
Home United: DLLWD
The Singapore club have won just two of their eight matches in all competitions this season and kept just one clean sheet. They have faced Indian opposition only once in the AFC Cup and that was Dempo in the two-legged 2008 quarter-final. Home United drew the match in Goa but were beaten 4-3 at home.
Churchill Brothers: LWWWL
Since their Federation Cup triumph, Churchill have played eight matches and won only half of them with two of those victories coming in the AFC Cup. They head beaten Singapore’s Warriors FC 3-0 at home in last year’s AFC Cup but lost the away match 1-0.
Team News
Home United
Unlike the game in Goa, the Singapore outfit have almost their entire squad available with midfielder Yasir Hanapi also back after serving a one-game suspension. Japanese-Brazilian striker Bruno Castanheira is fully fit again while Singapore forward Fazrul Nawaz has also made a successful return from injury.
Possible XI: Shahril Jantan; Ismail Yunos, Sirina Camara, Precious Emuejeraye, Juma’at Jantan; Izzdin Shafiq, Yasir Hanapi, Fazrul Nawaz, ,Lee Kwan-Woo; Qiu Li, Bruno Castanheira
Churchill Brothers
Churchill Brothers coach Mariano Dias is missing two key foreigners as Egyptian midfielder Abdelhamid Shabana is suspended while Trinidad & Tobago attacker Anthony Wolfe is injured. Bineesh Balan also hasn’t made the trip to Singapore due to injury while Costa Rican Cristian Lagos has reportedly returned back to his country. India midfielder and club captain Lenny Rodrigues is back though after missing out the home game due to suspension.
Possible XI: Lalit Thapa; Satish Singh, Dharmaraj Ravanan, Sanjay Balmuchu, Raju Yumnam; Saran Singh, Asley Fernandes, Lenny Rodrigues, Richard Costa; Jaison Vales, Balwant Singh
Key Men
Home United – Fazrul Nawaz
Photo Credit: Home United
The Singapore international has marked his return from injury with three goals in two S-League appearances and now would be aiming to inspire Home United to their first victory in this edition of the AFC Cup.
Churchill Brothers – Balwant Singh
The India international scored one of the goals of this year’s AFC Cup in the matchday three clash and will have extra responsibility in this game to add to his season tally of 14 due to the absence of Shabana and Wolfe.
