Fresh from holding top gun Bengaluru FC (BFC) to a frustrating 0-0 draw, Hyderabad FC will next look to tame Jamshedpur FC at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Vasco on Wednesday.
Hyderabad, which didn’t keep a clean sheet all season last time, now has two in two, including one in the opening round win over Odisha FC. The centre-back pairing of Odei Onaindia and Chinglensana Singh, which was outstanding against the Sunil Chhetri-powered BFC, seems primed to handle Nerijus Valskis, the golden-boot winner from the previous edition, and scorer of all three goals for Jamshedpur this campaign.
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It is, however, the offensive side of the game that Hyderabad coach Manuel Marquez will be worried by. In two matches thus far, his wards have scored a solitary goal, a penalty from Aridane Santana.
Hyderabad may have created chances and taken over 30 shots in the first two matches, but injuries to forward Joel Chianese (ankle) and midfield creator Lluis Sastre (hamstring) in the match against BFC will severely hamper the team. On match eve, Marquez confirmed the dreaded news that the duo would be sidelined for some time.
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It might seem the right opportunity for the Owen Coyle-coached Jamshedpur to exploit. But after having lost the opener to Chennaiyin FC 2-1 and then blowing a two-goal lead against Odisha to draw 2-2, Jamshedpur’s defence will be under scrutiny.
“We were outstanding in the first half against Odisha and we set the standards that we want to continue in the games to come,” Coyle said ahead of the clash against Hyderabad. “The disappointment was dropping two points in a game we should have won.”
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“We showed that we can score. We want to get the balance right to make sure that we don't concede soft goals like we did. When we do that and bring it all together, we are going to stand tall,” added the man who led Chennaiyin FC to the final last season.
- THE SQUADS -
HYDERABAD FC: Subrata Paul, Laxmikant Kattimani, Manas Dubey, Lalbiakhlua Jongte, Chinglensana Singh, Odei Onaindia, Dimple Bhagat, Nikhil Prabhu, Sahil Panwar, Akash Mishra, Kynsailang Khongsit, Asish Rai , Adil Khan, Halicharan Narzary, Joao Victor, Laldanmawia Ralte, Lluis Sastre, Hitesh Sharma, Abhishek Halder, Sahil Tavora, Mark Zothanpuia, Mohamed Yasir, Nikhil Poojary, Souvik Chakrabarti, Sweden Fernandes , Aridane Santana, Fran Sandaza, Joel Chianese, Liston Colaco, Ishan Dey, Lalawmpuia, Rohit Danu
JAMSHEDPUR FC: TP Rehenesh, Pawan Kumar, Niraj Kumar, Raj Mahato, Vishal Yadav, Peter Hartley, Stephen Eze, Narender Gehlot, Joyner Lourenco, Laldinliana Renthlei, Karan Amin, Manash Protim Gogoi, Sandip Mandi, Ricky Lallawmawma, Subhash Barua, Aitor Monroy, Alex Lima, Jackichand Singh, Nicholas Fitzgerald, Issac Vanmalsawma, Amarjit Singh, Mobashir Rahman, Jitendra Singh, Manisana Singh, Harsha Parui, Billu Teli, Gorachand Mardi, Gaurab, Bhupender Singh , Nerijus Valskis, David Grande, Aniket Jadhav, Sapam Kennedy Singh, William LalnunfelaWales), Balwant Singh, C. K. Vineeth, Anthony Pilkington (Ireland), Girik Khosla, Harmanpreet Singh.
Match Facts:
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: Tilak Maidan, Vasco
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