Team Herald
sports@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: FC Goa, having played two matches less than the teams above them in the Hero Indian Super League standings will look to continue their march up the table against Mumbai City FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Fatorda, on Sunday.
The Gaurs have scored the most number of goals in the tournament so far and they will want to continue in the same vein.
Brandon Fernandes will be buoyed by his new contract extension and he will start along with Mandar Rao Dessai on the wings. Manuel Lanzarote, with seven goals, is the highest scoring midfielder in the league and will look forward to net in more goals.
Coro broke his mini goal drought against the men in yellow (Kerala Blasters) and sits atop the standings with 10 goals. He will lead the line for the Gaurs once again, ahead of new signing Mark Sifneos.
Edu Bedia opened his goal scoring account with a fine header to win the match in Kochi and he will start alongside Moroccan midfielder Ahmed Jahouh.
Bruno Pinheiro sat out of the previous game against Kerala owing to a knee injury and it is unlikely he’ll be drafted back into the squad immediately. In his absence, Sergio Juste will play alongside Ali Mohamed who has just penned a new two-year deal with the club. Narayan Das and Seriton Fernandes will continue as full backs.
Skipper Laxmikant Kattimani will be under the crossbar ahead of Punjab custodian Naveen Kumar. The Goan keeper has found his form after a shaky start and has made a number of good saves along the way. He’s yet to keep a clean sheet in the league and will want to do so against Mumbai City FC.
The Islanders will want to do the double against the Goans, having taken three points from them at home. They will, however, have a mountain to climb, having never beaten the Gaurs in three previous attempts at Fatorda.
Mumbai has seen a huge drop in form, having failed to win in their last three games, drawing one and losing two, letting in six goals in the process.
“I think we are one of the teams that found a way past FC Goa during the first round and beat them. From that game onward, they have continued to do what they do well and because of that they are in the position that they are. They are effective but in that game we managed to control them and we hope that we can do the same on Sunday,” said Mumbai head coach Alexandre Guimaraes, referring to a 2-1 win early in the season.
