Mohun Bagan will be playing all important match against Odisha on next Saturday at Bhubaneswar. Both team aiming for top spot and lock horn to secure their respective target. Mohun Bagan with hattrick of wins both in home and away after a 2-2 draw in Kolkata Derby and Odisha under Sergio Lobera looked like a formidable force who registered 2 wins and 1 draw in February after the Indian Super League resumes.
In their last match against North East, Mohun Bagan down by a goal very early at Salt Lake but they eventually came back from behind and secure the victory with 4-2 margin. They seems to be doing right thing on the right moment and after tasted Goa their first defeat of the season the confidence level of the team is supreme. And that confidence allowed them to overcome North East as well. Availability of the full squad is another thing which added a spring in their confidence. Anwar featured in the last match and played for 20 odd minutes and what we heard from our correspondence that Hamill is also started practice with the first team.
If Hamil and Anwar are fully fit then they could feature in the playing XI alongwith Yuste and Subhasish to put some solidity in the defense. Mohun Bagan tactics over their attacking play was never under doubt as they are the team with highest goal scored in ISL and if they could solve the puzzle in their defensive transition then they could go all the way and clinch the glory at the end of the season.
Odisha, by the way, are in a different form than their any previous appearances in the league. They are sitting top of the table after half of the season is over and that is happening for the first time in their club history. They have rightly appointed Sergio Lobera in this season and their investment seemed to be returning the outcome. They looked solid in their game play and the deadly duo, Roy Krishna and Diego Mauricio scored as many goals as any other Striking pair. Roy Krishna sitting top of the list with 11 Goals and Diego Mauricio scored as many as 6 goals to sitting in 4th position on that list.
But they will going to have a missing link and that link is Ahmed Jahouh who had 4 yellow cards. Jahouh will miss the all important match and we have already seen what happened in their midfield without him in their previous encounter against Mohun Bagan in Kolkata. In that match Mohun Bagan equalized from 2 goals down after Jahouh subbed off because of a hamstring injury.
Saturday at Kalinga Stadium will going to see a blockbuster encounter between two heavyweights. The reunion between two important person, one is Antonio Lopez Habas and the other one will be Roy Krishna who try to outclass each other in the match. The travelling Mariners will be present in the gallery at Kalinga just like they were during AFC Cup encounter they had 5 months ago.
Line-up Prediction:
Recent Encounters:
Mohun Bagan 2 – 2 Odisha FC (Dec 6, 2023, Indian Super League)
Kick off Time: 5:00PM(IST)
Live telecast/streaming: JioCinema, Sports18 3, DD Bangla, OneFootball(International)
Venue: Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
