Hosts Salgaocar FC will aim to gather three valuable points when they take on Mumbai FC in an I-League game at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Saturday. The Goan side are current placed in the eighth position with eight points from 10 games, having won two, drawn two and lost six.
The visitors are at the fifth spot with 11 points from 10 games, with two wins, five draw and three losses. In the first leg match, between the two sides, Mumbai came out victorious with a 2-1 scoreline.
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But Salgaocar's confidence will be sky high coming into the match as they outclassed heavyweights East Bengal 3-1 in their last match on Tuesday while Mumbai come into the tie after a 2-2 draw against top-flight debutants Aizawl FC.
Mumbai can be a force to reckon with if they are given space up front. Arata Izumi and Jayesh Rane have the required pace and skills to outfox rival defenders.
Mumbai coach Khalid Jamil will hope that the defence, which is in the safe hands of reliable Ashutosh Mehta and new recruits Min-Chol Son of South Korea, Pratik Chowdhary and Clyde Fernandes, are expected to put up a doughty display to contain the threat from Salgaocar.
Salgaocar, on the other hand, will aim to climb the points table as they are struggling in the second last spot. They need to gain confidence from their last match and deliver their best at home.
Though Santosh Kashyap's men have been able to get on the scoresheet frequently thanks to the likes of in-form striker Darryl Duffy, their defence has been a major worry. The Salgaocar coach will hope that his men can keep the likes of Izumi and Rane at bay when they lock horns with the Maharashtra-based club.
