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Match 15 of Hero Indian Super League 2018-19 brings two league powerhouses - FC Pune City and Bengaluru FC against each other. Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium of Pune will host the match which will have nothing short of classic football.
Pune City, who haven't marked a win from their first two matches, are in a very desperate state for victory. Nothing less than 3 points would do them any good after a loss and a draw against Mumbai City and Delhi Dynamos respectively.
Bengaluru FC's position in the ISL table is good only when compared to the Pune side. Bengaluru currently hold 4 points from an early win against Chennaiyin FC and a draw against Jamshedpur. The one point from Jamshedpur wasn't a satisfactory outing as the club conceded twice in the final 10 minutes.
The two teams meeting at Pune will be eyeing for a dominant win to get their games back on track.
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Match Information
Date: 22 October
Kickoff: 7:30 PM IST
Live Stream: Star Sports Channels and hotstar.com
Venue: Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium, Pune
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Team News
Pune City
Keenan Almeida is out injured for 'The Stallions'. A good news for the Pune City fans would be that Marcelinho would most probably make it to the first XI. The Brazilian played the second half against Mumbai City and would be a big boost to Miguel Portugal's attacking tactics if fielded from the beginning. Martin Diaz might move out and Gurtej might play, to balance the foreign quota. Marko Stankovic too might come into the lineup
Bengaluru FC
Carles Cuadrat does have a full size squad available. There are no suspensions or confirmed injuries. Dimas Delgado might come into the XI to add more depth to the midfield. Otherwise, Cuadrat wouldn't experiment as getting back to the winning ways is crucial for the club.
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Probable Line-ups
Pune City (4-2-3-1): Kaith, Golui, Mills, Gurtej, Fanai, Adil, Stankovic, Poojari, Carlos, Marcelinho, Alfaro
Bengaluru FC (4-2-3-1): Gurpreet, Bheke, Serran, Juanan, Nishu, Khabra, Paartalu, Udanta, Hernandez, Chhetri, Miku
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Form Guide
Last 5 matches.
Pune City: L-D-L-L-D
Bengaluru FC: D-W-L-L-L
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Head-to-Head
Pune City: 0
Bengaluru FC: 2
Draw: 2
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Key Players
Pune City
Emiliano Alfaro - Pune City's most sharp shooter at goal will be a key player for them again. With a tight defence like Bengaluru FC's standing up front, the experience and skill of Alfaro will be certainly required to pull a tough challenge. But still, other names like Diego Carlos and Marcelinho should offer decent support to the lone striker.
Bengaluru FC
Bengaluru FC might rely on Sunil Chhetri for most of their attacks. While Miku and Udanta Singh will have equal roles, Chhetri will have better roles to do. He can exploit the wings of Pune City guarded by young Indian defenders. If Miku gets marked by the stoppers, Chhetri can get the ball into the final third through the wings.
Pune City vs Bengaluru FC: Predictions
Bengaluru FC have always had the better of Pune City and the latter are yet to win a match this season. The attack lines of both the clubs will be fierce with names like Alfaro, Marcelinho, Sunil Chhetri and Miku wearing the boots. However, the visitors might collect the 3 points at the end of the 90 minutes.
Predicted Score: Pune City 0:2 Bengaluru FC
