The top tier of TAL kicks off on November 6th at FSV Arena. Parikrma were crowned champions of Season 3 and will be looking to defend their title but expect competition to be much tougher than last season, with all teams having strengthened considerably.
Horizons won the inaugural edition of the TAL Cup and will be looking to add to their trophy cabinet, while teams like Supernova, Gremio and Rare Dare will look to up the ante in their pursuit of glory!
8:00 AM – FC Bengal v Yataghan Internazionale
The first game of the day features newly promoted side FC Bengal taking on TAL veterans Yataghan Internazionale. Bengal have made some excellent acquisitions over the off-season poaching some important players from Horizons but they may need time to adjust to the top flight.
Yataghan will stick to their usual strategy which is to play compact and hit on the counter-attack. However, they will need to add some pace on the flanks to give them options while going forward. This should be a low scoring game but a draw looks to be on the cards.
Players to Watch
Manivannan R (Horizons FC)
Jay Singadia (Yataghan Internazionale)
Crystal Ball: FC Bengal (1) – (1) Yataghan Internazionale
9:30 AM – Horizons FC v FC Kougen Kikou
Next up, TAL cup winners Horizons FC taken on Kougen Kikou. Both teams have been in TAL since its inception and know the grind, but both have a point to prove. Horizons won the inaugural season of TAL but since then have faltered only to finish runners-up in the following two seasons but their cup win is an indication that they are on the path of redemption.
Kougen Kikou have always had a roller coaster time in the league putting in impressive performances in one game followed by a lackluster one in the next, something they will look to fix this time around.
Players to Watch
Barry Anand(Horizons FC)
Yasuhiro Nishino (Yataghan Internazionale)
Crystal Ball: Horizons FC (2) – (1) FC Kougen Kikou
11:00 AM – Gremio FC v Samba FC
The third game of the day has perennial dark horse for the title Gremio FC up against defensive kings Samba FC. Gremio had a poor showing in Season 3, just finishing above the relegation zone but necessary off-season additions seem to have been added to give them a chance at returning to the top half again; a top three finish is what they will be aiming for.
Samba FC pulled off one of the performances of the season in their playoff encounter against Titans last season to keep their place in the top tier. They will not want a repeat of that situation but they need to get their game plan into action day 1.
Players to Watch
Hitesh Luniya (Gremio FC)
Zaheer PA (Samba FC)
Crystal Ball: Gremio FC (1) – (0) Samba FC
12:30 PM – Supernova FC v Project 7
Supernova FC go up against Project 7 in the next game and this should be an interesting match-up with both teams always looking to attack. Supernova have not hit the heights they hit when they won Season 2 (Division 2) but will be looking to consolidate their position in the top three.
Project 7 had a great start to last season before their performances withered towards the end. We are expecting tons of goals in this match and it should be an entertaining one.
Players to Watch
Adrian Silvester (Supernova FC)
Rahul Singh (Project 7)
Crystal Ball: Supernova FC (4) – (3) Project 7
2:15 PM – Rare Dare FC v Mavericks FC
The afternoon kick off has Rare Dare FC pitted against Mavericks FC. RDFC won the most improved team award last season after a tremendous second half to the season and they will look to continue to continue building on that.
Mavericks have fallen way down since their 5th placed finish in Season 1 but with a renewed spirit they will look to emulate their previous performances. The key to this match will be if Mavericks can stop RDFC’s attack force.
Players to Watch
Adarsh AX (Rare Dare FC)
Obul Reddy (Mavericks FC)
Crystal Ball: Rare Dare FC (2) – (1) Mavericks FC
3:45 PM – Parikrma FC v Flipkart FC
Defending champions Parikrma FC open their season against Flipkart FC in the final game of Gameweek 1. Parikrma were impressive in their first season in Division 1 last time around but teams now know how they play and they have to tweak their strategy to pick up results.
Flipkart have developed their own unique style of play but need to tweak a thing or two to take the team up a notch. When the sides met last time, Parikrma scored a last minute winner against Flipkart in a tight game and the latter will now be looking to exact revenge on their opponents.
Players to Watch
Nikhil Gopal (Parikrma FC)
Karthik Sah (Flipkart FC)
Crystal Ball: Parikrma FC (1) – (0) Flipkart FC
