The Mumbai Football Arena will witness an intense clash between two high-flying teams when Mumbai City FC squares off against Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League on Sunday.
The Mumbai outfit has had a dream run so far, notching up 30 points from 12 games and is the only side in this edition of the tournament to remain undefeated. With nine victories and three draws, Mumbai City FC comfortably holds the second spot in the points table, while Kerala Blasters, too, has been undefeated in its last eight games and is placed third with 25 points from 12 matches.
In its last outing in October, Mumbai City FC had defeated Blasters, and Kerala hasn’t lost a game since.
“We don’t look at the opposition too much in terms of streaks – the same way we don’t look at our own streak. I’ve spoken about making sure that we just focus on our own game, and preparing ourselves as well as we can to face what will be a very tough and challenging Kerala Blasters side,” Mumbai coach Des Buckingham said.
The focus will be on Lallianzuala Chhangte and Bipin Singh, who fired for the Islanders in their previous outing against Odisha FC. Despite taking off the seasoned Greg Stewart early, Mumbai defeated Odisha, riding on Chhangte’s brace, and in a crucial game, it will be hoping for the two to come good.
The Blasters will pin their hopes on Dimitrios Diamantakos, Ivan Kaliuzhnyi, and Sahal Abdul Samad, who have 13 goals between them so far. The way it managed to turn things around after the defeat against Mumbai in October speaks volumes about the team’s mental toughness. In total 17 appearances, Mumbai City FC won seven times and Blasters on four occasions, while six games ended in a draw.
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