I-League: Salgaocar FC make short away trip to take on familiar foes Pune FC

Darryl Duffy seen in training at the BITS Pilani ground with Colaco, Oliveira and Lamare

Vasco: After a disappointing 3-1 loss to league leaders Mohun Bagan, the Greens will look to bounce back when they take on Pune FC in a Round 14 clash of the Hero I-League at the Balewadi Sports complex in Pune.

The teams are currently placed 4th and 5th in the table with the Red Lizards having accumulated 17 points as opposed to Salgaocar’s 14. A win, however, will take the Greens above Pune FC in the points table. In the same fixture last year, played a year ago, almost to the date, the Greens emerged victorious 2-1, thanks to a late Duffy strike.

Salgaocar have had a mixed bag of results this year. After a slow start to the season, wins against Sporting and East Bengal brought them back in the reckoning. However, with the spate of injuries and key players missing since the start of the I-League, they have failed to have a serious impact thus far.

There are no injury concerns ahead of tomorrow’s clash however and the Greens have all the players available for the key clash.

Derrick Pereira, who coached Pune FC for 4 years before taking over at Salgaocar FC was hopeful ahead of the clash against his former side.

“We have taken the positives from the last game. Despite playing Bagan in their own backyard, we created plenty of chances and had the goal not been disallowed, it could have been a very different story”, he remarked.

Derrick was referring to the refereeing lapse that saw Darryl Duff’s goal ruled out for off-side when he seemed to be at least a yard on side with the match delicately poised at 1-1. The Scottish striker later went on to have another goal disallowed for off-side that was marginal.

Pune FC come into the game back of a draw in the first ever Pune derby against Bharat FC and will be well aware that a win will put them within a point of 2nd and 3rd placed Bengaluru FC and Royal Wahingdoh on 21 points each. The Pune gaffer Karim Bencherifa had the following to say on the eve of the clash.

“Salgaocar is a team that likes to play football and are known for their fair play like us. The three games that we have played against them in this season have all been closely fought. Tomorrow, it won't be any different and we are looking forward to a good match.”

The clashes between the sides include the finals of the Durand Cup, the Federation Cup and the first leg of the I-League, the Greens having won on the first two occasions with the third having ended in a 1-1 stalemate. All 3 matches having been played in Goa, Pune FC will look to avenge the defeats on home soil.