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Mumbai City FC and FC Pune City will miss a host of national players in their first ISL match of this season on Monday. The Mumbai team will have to do without goalkeeper Subrata Pal and striker Sunil Chhetri whereas the Pune side will be missing the services of Pritam Kotal, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Bikash Jairu and Jackichand Singh in ISL’s first Maharashtra derby of this season at Pune.
With national players of the Indian side leaving the country to play India’s 2018 World Cup qualifying round game against Turkmenistan on October 8 at Ashgabat, they will miss the first three ISL games for the Mumbai and Pune sides respectively.
The Mumbai based franchise will be the most affected as it is the only team, without a foreign goalkeeper. India’s star keeper’s absence leaves player-cum-manager Nicolas Anelka with a selection headache right at the start of their campaign.
The Frenchman will now have to choose between Debjit Majumder, who excelled for Mohun Bagan in their I-League title-triumph and young Salgaocar FC goalkeeper Albino Gomes.
The match will also see the visitors miss the services of Indian striker Sunil Chettri. Midfielder Lalchhuanmawia Fanai makes it three absentees for the Mumbai side. Haitian striker Sony Norde will be taking up Chhetri’s duties. He is well versed with Indian conditions, after playing for reigning I-League champions Mohun Bagan last year.
The hosts FC Pune City have a comparatively stronger team to last season. James Bailey, Roger Johnson, Nicky Shorey and Steve Simonsen have all joined in from England as Pune aim to win the competition this year.
But it’s not just these players – they have also signed a plethora of international and Indian stars as Tuncay Sanli, Adrian Mutu, Didier Zokora and Kalu Uche join forces with Jackichand Singh, Eugeneson Lyngdoh and Gouramangi Singh.
Mumbai City FC has a strong squad as well. They will be glad to have retained some of their best foreign players from last season with Nicolas Anelka resuming his role as as a player cum manager. Centre-back Pavel Cmovs and last season’s hat-trick hero Andre Moritz also return for their second stint in the ISL.
Mumbai’s strength undoubtedly lies in attack. Apart from Anelka, Frederic Piquione also joins the squad along with Sony Norde who was one of the I-League's best players last season with Mohun Bagan.
