Playoff contender Hyderabad will lock horns with rejuvenated Bengal in Friday’s Indian Football League clash. The result will affect both sides in their points table game.
Match Timings: Feb 12, 7:30 PM IST
Match Preview
Indian Football League, 2020-21, is in its final weeks. Hyderabad are in a strong position to take the playoffs qualification, but they have to be consistent in the next four matches. Hyderabad, Goa, and Northeast are in the same boat, and they will fight out for the last two spots in the playoffs. The margin of points assured Mumbai and Mariners on the first two spots. In the last game, they played a goalless draw with their playoffs rivals, Northeast. Hyderabad had good possession, and Santana troubled Subhasish Roy Chowdhury in the early first half.
Lluis Sastre also set-up a shot for Mohammad Yasir, which went off target. In the 40th minute, Northeast had a penalty appeal when Luis Machado was fouled inside the six-yard box. Nizams got a good chance in the 55th minute, but Akash couldn’t avail it. Manuel Roca brought on Liston Colaco in the 63rd minute, but it didn’t provide any impact in the attack. Colaco took a shot from a distance in the 90th minute, but Subhasish made an easy save. Asish Rai delivered a good cross to Santana, but the Spaniard failed to generate power from the edge of the box. Nizams are unbeaten from the last eight matches, but in the last six encounters, Hyderabad appeared in three goalless draws. Hyderabad cannot afford to drop points when two other clubs are pushing hard in the playoff race.
Meanwhile, Bengal have nothing to gain as the early poor performance in the tournament cost them. In the middle, they had some winning moments. In the last outing, they defeated Jamshedpur 2-1 to secure their third victory. Jamshedpur got two easy free-kicks, but Valskis’ efforts went wide. Narayan Das provided a solid cross for Anthony Pilkington, but Stephen Eze survived the scar. Reds and Gold took the lead a minute later when Matti Steinmann scored through a glancing header with the help of Narayan Das’s corner-kick. After a dominating first half, Narayan Das tried to double the lead with Steinmann, and even penalty chance also occurred. Anthony Pilkington doubled the lead, courtesy of Steinnman’s fine pass. The Irishman came close to another goal, but it hit the woodwork. Peter Hartley scored the only goal for Red Miners, and Valskis could have scored an equaliser in injury-time, but Subrata made a stunning save. Bengal would eye a better finish in the table considering the current form.
Possible Lineups & Current Form
Bengal
Subrata Paul, Raju Gaikwad, Sarthak Golui, Danny Fox, Ankit Mukherjee, Sourav Das, Matti Steinmann, Narayan Das, Anthony Pilkington, Jacques Maghoma, Bright Enobakhare
Current Form: D W D D D
Previous Match: 2-1 victory against Jamshedpur
Hyderabad
Laxmikant Kattimani, Asish Rai, Odei Onaindia, Chinglensana Singh, Akash Mishra, Joao Victor, Hitesh Sharma, Liston Colaco, Mohammed Yasir, Aridane Santana, Fran Sandaza
Current Form: W L D L D
Previous Match: goalless draw with Northeast
Key Players
Bengal
Matti Steinmann
4 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
Jacques Maghoma
3 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
Hyderabad
Aridane Santana
7 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
Joel Chianese
3 goals in Indian Football League 2020-21
