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Chennaiyin FC head to the west coast hoping for the first win of the season in the second season of the Indian Super League. Marco Materazzi has found it hard adjusting to life in the Chennaiyin hot seat, with recent results not on his side.
A 2-3 defeat to Atletico de Kolkata was followed up four days later by an away defeat to Delhi Dynamos to leave them seventh in the table. And with FC Goa currently occupying the second spot, and unbeaten in two, it would not come as a shock if the Goans host Chennaiyin and pick up all three points.
Kickoff and Telecast
Venue: Fatorda Stadium, Margao – Goa.
Live Telecast: Star Sports 1 & 2, Star Sports HD1 & HD2
Live Streaming: starsports.com
Team News
FC Goa will be looking to field an almost similar team with the core of the team remaining the same. Zico will be hoping that Bikramjit Singh, who missed the first two matches due to an injury, will be fit for this match. Denson Devadas has looked out of sorts and had a poor game against Atletico de Kolkata.
Another absentee due to injury has been Victor Simoes, who has had a recurring knee injury. He is expected to fit for this match and will replace another Brazilian, Reinaldo, who has looked a far cry from being an out-and-out striker. In the match against Kolkata, Reinaldo was guilty of being found out of position on many occasions leaving FC Goa with nobody up front to score the goals.
The only other players missing from Zico’s squad will be Pronoy Halder and Narayan Das, who are away on national duty for India’s match against Oman on 13 October.
Likely XI: Elinton Andrade, Lucio, Gregory Arnolin, Debabrata Roy, Keenan Almeida, Bikramjit Singh, Leo Moura, Jofre, Romeo Fernandes, Mandar Rao Desai, Victor Simoes
Marco Materazzi will be under tremendous pressure to get a result from this match following back-to-back defeats in the first two matches. We can expect a lot of changes from the team that started against Delhi Dynamos. Stiven Mendoza has looked a shadow of his glorious past and will most certainly return to the bench after being given a start in the last match and will be replaced by Fikru in the starting XI.
Another player who looked out of sorts in the last match was Manuele Blasi, who could be replaced by Raphael Augusto or Bruno Pellisari. Chennnaiyin will continue to miss the services of Jeje, Dhanachandra Singh and Karanjit Singh who are away on national duty for India’s match against Oman.
Likely XI : Edel, Mendy, Potenza, Abhishek Das, Sena Ralte, Thoi Singh, Raphael Augusto, Harmanjot Khabra, Elano, Balwant Singh, Fikru
Key Battles
Gregory Arnolin vs Fikru Teferra
Last season saw one of the fiercest rivalries between Gregory Arnolin and Fikru with the latter getting banned for headbutting the former. This fierce rivalry is set to continue this season when Goa takes on Chennaiyin.
Arnolin has been solid at the back for Goa and has hardly put a foot wrong in the opening two matches. His towering height and physical presence at the heart of Goa’s defence makes him a very difficult player to overcome. He will come up against his bête noire Fikru, who has been slightly subdued this year and was left on the bench by Coach Marco Materazzi in the last match.
Fikru’s biggest asset is his pace and he will prove to be a handful for Goa’s ageing centre backs. The clash between these two players will certainly be one of the most anticipated battles in this match.
Leo Moura vs Elano
Chennaiyin FC’s marquee player Elano was one of the most outstanding players of the season last year and was among the few marquee players to be retained this year. He also ended last season as the highest goal scorer even though he missed the latter stages of the league due to an injury.
Elano is known for his sublime dribbling skills and ball control. He is the driving force behind the Chennaiyin attack and is also known for his pinpoint accuracy with free kicks. Although he has not been at his best in the opening two matches, he certainly will be the player to watch out for in this match.
He will come up against another Brazilian veteran Leo Moura in the centre of midfield. Moura has controlled the FC Goa midfield in the initial two matches and will look to continue with the same. The tussle between these two midfield marshall’s will certainly be a treat to watch.
Prediction
FC Goa 2-0 Chennaiyin FC
