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The fight for the top position on the ISL table will be on at Bengaluru, as Jamshedpur is coming against Bengaluru FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium this Sunday. A houseful stadium will be arriving to watch the last season finalists, play one of the 'strongest on paper' team.
Jamshedpur FC playing their second consecutive away match ended their first match 2 goals ahead of Mumbai City FC.
Meanwhile, Bengaluru FC had got past Chennaiyin FC with a single sharp strike from the Venezuelan striker Miku.
Both the teams are taking the field with a lot of positives from their first match. It has to be seen which team would be going in confident and would walk out with the winning goal.
Kickoff Information
Date: 07 October
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Live Stream: Star Sports Channels and hotstar.com
Venue: Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru
Team News
Bengaluru FC:
The Blues have started off the season, showing the doubters that their performance has not left with their coach. Bengaluru FC, who were under their new head coach, Carlos Cuadrat managed to secure a win, a confidence boost to the Spanish man.
However, BFC lacked various elements on the field against Chennaiyin FC. The good old rhythm they owned was not found anywhere on the field and the first half was mostly to the visitors, except the goal in the 41st minute.
Cuadrat wouldn't want to repeat his mistakes and will be aiming at a better win this time. Rahul Bheke was a weak link for the opponents in the last game.
A few errors from him paved way for dangerous attacks, none of which ended on goal luckily. The defence apart from this was mostly good and only lacked coordination on a few occasions. Hence, no changes need to be expected at the back of the line for Bengaluru.
The midfield rectified their mistakes from the first half, which resulted in a better second half in the previous game.
This answers all the questions on where Bengaluru FC can go wrong. If the midfielders does the job assigned to them, a win will be coming their way at ease.
Eric Paartalu put up a notable performance in the central midfield being the feeder with 33 passes. Harmanjot Khabra too played his part being the link between defence and attack.
Sunil Chhetri was not on his best day, having to end the game without a single shot on goal. However, the Indian striker cannot be taken lightly and if regains his form, will be the most dangerous man for Jamshedpur defence.
Miku, without doubt, will be Cuadrat's most lethal weapon and will be a headache for Subhasish Roy guarding the JFC net.
Jamshedpur FC:
The Men of Steel will be hoping to continue their momentum from Mumbai at Bengaluru too. Cesar Ferrando's Indian debut as a coach can be reviewed as a success.
His decision of playing two foreign midfielders in the holding positions should be given credit. The role played by them was crucial in the team's win.
Jamshedpur FC will be missing the Indian spiderman Subrata Pal once again at the post. But still, Subhasish Roy was not bad against Mumbai City FC and will not be a worry for the coach.
The defence was well organized, rising to the occasion whenever needed. Yumnam Raju impressed with seven tackles and 30 passes.
The defensive midfielders - Memo and Mario Arques were equally involved in attacks and defence, making things easy for the men at the front.
This will be a huge advantage for the Jamshedpur club to slow down the pacy Bengaluru FC attack.
Upfront, Jerry Mawhmingthanga was at the peak of his form taking shots, opening up chances and building dangerous attacks.
The possibility of a change in the midfield still remains, as the legendary Tim Cahill is out of suspension and ready for his ISL debut.
Carlos Calvo might be the one going out. The Australian striker's position needs to be balanced and will most probably be placed just behind the forward.
A comparatively poor outing from Sumeet Passi in the last game might put him on the bench, making way for Farukh Choudhary.
This also opens up a chance of playing Sergio Cidoncha or Tim Cahill as the lone striker as Choudhary can be appointed to the duties in midfield.
Probable Line-ups
Bengaluru FC (4-2-3-1) - Gurpreet, Bheke, Serran, Juanan, Nishu, Khabra, Paartalu, Udanta, Hernandez, Chhetri, Miku
Jamshedpur FC (4-2-3-1) - Subhasish, Raju, Gaikwad, Tiri, Jairu, Memo, Arques, Jerry, Farukh, Cidoncha, Cahill
Key Players
Bengaluru FC
Miku, without any doubt would be Bengaluru's most sharp weapon. His capabilities were seen in the last match from the clean strike he got past the Chennaiyin FC custodian. The same role will be assigned to him against Jamshedpur FC too.
Jamshedpur FC
Tim Cahill, is expected to make his debut for Jamshedpur FC on Sunday. The change this Australian can bring into the lineup will be massive and can influence the whole team. If Cahill is having a good day, Bengaluru FC will have to work hard to mark the 38-year old.
Predictions
Since both the teams are coming with good forms and have players of equal caliber, the scoreline might stay equal at the end of the 90 minutes.
Predicted Score: 1-1
