I-League: Royal Wahingdoh vs Shillong Lajong - Preview

Royal Wahingdoh and Shillong Lajong will go head-to-head in the Shillong derby on Sunday

Royal Wahingdoh FC will play host to Shillong Lajong FC in the second leg of the Shillong derby in what is expected to be a packed JN Stadium Shillong on Sunday at 4:30pm. The match will be telecast live on Ten Action.

The Reds are coming into this fixture after playing out a goalless draw against league leaders McDowell’s Mohun Bagan on the 8th of April in Kolkata. Thangboi Singto’s men dominated the match and had plenty of chances in front of goal, but were unlucky not to collect all the three points.

Since the I-League resumed after the international break, Lajong have remained unbeaten so far. The team drew 1-1 against Sporting Clube De Goa in Goa, defeated Mumbai FC in a high scoring encounter, 6-0 and played out a goalless draw in Kolkata.

The team has managed to climb up the table from the relegation zone and are on the 8th position with 11 points. Interestingly, Lajong is the third team in the league to score the highest number of goals with 18 goals. Striker Cornell Glen also remains the second highest goalscorer with 9 goals from 11 appearances.

In all probability, strikers Cornell Glen, Uilliams Souza Silva and Seiminlen Doungel will be given the duties to play up front and score goals for the team. What Lajong may lack at the moment is the finishing touch, which was evident in their previous encounter against Mohun Bagan. Thus, the strikers need to improve on their finishing and score in tomorrow’s crucial tie.

In midfield, Penn Orji, who has finally found his feet and showcased good performances in the previous matches, will be placed at the centre of the park along with Milan Singh, who will look to provide ample attack and threaten the opposition.

At the back, captain Aibor Khongjee, along and Minchol Son, will have to work hard to stop the opponents from scoring and encourage a spirited performance from the team. Speaking to the club media, Thangboi Singto said, “All the players and staff are very excited for the derby. We have prepared to the best of our abilities and the confidence is good.”

“If all the players are fit we will go with an unchanged squad”, he said.

Coach Singto also shared his thoughts on Royal Wahingdoh and said, “Wahingdoh has done extremely well and best wishes to the team.”

He continued, “It’s time for us to concentrate more on our team and performance. We need to get maximum points.”

Royal Wahingdoh FC, the I-League debutants, are having an incredible first season and have made a great start to the I-League. Santosh Kashyap’s in-form side are heading into this fixture after playing out a goalless draw against bottom placed team Sporting Clube De Goa on Tuesday. The Shillong outfit, who are the host of the second leg of the Shillong Derby, are in the 3rd position with 22 points.

The Royals play a very interesting and attractive brand of football. The squad is bolstered with big signings like Godwin Franco, Naoba Singh, Govin Singh, foreign recruit Kim and captain Densill Theobald, to name a few.

The players to watch out for are Bekay Bewar, Jackichand Singh and Seityasen Singh who are in a stupendous form for their team and have been very dangerous in attack. They are capable of creating a lot of chances in the final third.

Come Sunday, all roads will lead to the JN Stadium Shillong at 4:30pm. Tomorrow’s encounter promises to be a thrilling one where both teams will settle for nothing less than a victory to earn the bragging rights.