After a rather disappointing start to the season, Mohun Bagan will try to mend their ways and snatch three away points in their fixture against Indian Arrows in Cuttack this coming weekend. The Kolkata giants were sniffing victory in their last match, but a brilliant free-kick from Aizawl FC’s David Lalrinmuana spoiled their party. Sankarlal Chakraborty will have to start from scratch all over again.
On the other hand, the youngsters of Indian Arrows will be high on confidence after a win over Shillong Lajong FC earlier this week. Floyd Pinto’s boys made a sensational comeback after they were hammered 1-4 by Chennai City FC in the opening tie. But playing against Mohun Bagan will be a different ball game altogether with foreign recruits likely to make their job tougher.
In the last edition, the young guns had put up an extraordinary fight to hold Mohun Bagan 1-1 at their home ground during the first leg while the ‘Mariners’ clinched a 2-0 victory in the return leg. Arrows comprise a bunch of talented footballers who are determined to prove their worth in the marathon league, while Mohun Bagan is a potential title contender. Both the teams will give their cent percent when the face off each other at the Barabati Stadium on Saturday evening.
Indian Arrows vs Mohun Bagan: Match Information
Date: 10th November 2018
Kick-off: 5 PM IST
Live Streaming: Star Network and Hotstar
Venue: Barabati Stadium, Cuttack
Last two meetings:
27/02/2018: Indian Arrows 0-2 Mohun Bagan
29/12/2017: Mohun Bagan 1-1 Indian Arrows
Indian Arrows vs Mohun Bagan: Probable line-ups:
Indian Arrows (4-4-2): P.S. Gill (GK), Ashish. Rai, Narender Gahlot, Anwar Ali, Boris Singh, Amarjit Singh Kiyam, Suresh Singh Wangjam, Lalengmawia, Reamsochung/Stalin, Aniket Jadhav/Rahim Ali, Rahul K.P
Mohun Bagan (4-4-2): Shankar Roy (gk), Arijit Bagui, Eze Kingsley, Kim Kima, Abhishek Ambekar, Omar Elhussieny, Yuta Kinowaki, Pintu Mahata, Britto/Sony, Henry Kisekka, Dipanda Dicka
Key Players:
Anwar Ali (Indian Arrows)
Facing a team with a forward line consisting of Henry Kisekka, Dipanda Dicka and Sony Norde in the wings will be an uphill task for the Indian Arrows. Anwar Ali is the man to watch out for at the heart of the defence. Probably the find of 2017 Under-17 World Cup, he will be the man in command to check the mighty attacking force of Mohun Bagan during their clash in Cuttack this weekend.
After kick-starting his youth career with Minerva Punjab FC, he stormed into the Indian U-17 team for the mega event and since then he has been a vital member of the Indian colts. He even scored the winning goal when India faced Argentina under-20 national football team at the 2018 COTIF Cup.
Sony Norde (Mohun Bagan)
He is by far the most lethal player in the Bagan squad and he proved it yet again in the previous match. After being out of action for 9 months, it took him 7 minutes to script his name on the scoresheet. There was much speculation surrounding him, but finally, he was roped in by the management a few weeks ago.
Although he was introduced in the 60th minute in the last match, hopefully, he will be playing full matches after two or three games. The Haitian winger inspired Mohun Bagan to their maiden I-League title in 2015, can he repeat the feat?