Durand Cup 2022 Preview: Mohammedan SC, Bengaluru FC clash for pole position in Group A

Both teams have already advanced into the quarter-finals.

Having already secured qualification into the knockouts, Mohammedan SC and Bengaluru FC will tussle for the top spot in Group A when they meet on Friday. Mohammedan SC, last season's runners-up, currently sit on top two points clear of BFC, who have seven points. The Black Panthers have been in scintillating form, dispatching FC Goa 3-1 in the opener before trouncing Jamshedpur 3-0 and Indian Air Force 2-0.

Bengaluru FC were held by a spirited FC Goa to a 2-2 draw in their last fixture. They will look to iron out individual errors in defence, two of such resulted in their opponents scoring. The blues are playing some eye-catching attacking football and have the firepower to come out on top in this blockbuster clash.

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The Stakes

Mohammedan SC have played three, won three. They have scored eight goals and conceded just one. They have a two-point lead over their opponents. Despite the temptation to hand some minutes to the youngsters, the Black Panthers will want to start with a full-strength squad just to test their capabilities against an ISL club. They also would not want to break their winning momentum.

Bengaluru FC will be concerned over their second-half display against FC Goa. Comfortably leading into the break, two costly losses of possession from Rohit Kumar and Sunil Chhetri saw the Gaurs hit back with two quickfire goals. They had rested the big guns last time out and will want to finish on top of Group A to get a slightly easier run in the knockouts.

Team News

Prince Ibara will miss out for BFC after being stretchered off. Mohammedan SC has a full-strength squad.

Head-to-head

Both senior teams last met in the 2013-14 I-League season. Bengaluru FC beat Mohammedan 3-2 and 2-1 respectively. BFC won the league that year, while Mohammedan were relegated.

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Probable line-ups

Mohammedan SC: Sankar Roy, Vanlalzuidika, Sairuat Kima, Ousmane N’Daiye, Abhishek Ambekar, Abhash Thapa, Nuriddin Davronov Pritam Singh, SK Faiaz, Marcus Joseph (c), Faslu Rahmanas

Bengaluru FC: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Prabir Das, Sandesh Jhingan, Alexandar Jovanovic, Hira Mondal, Bruno Ramires, Suresh Singh, Jayesh Rane, Udanta Singh, Sunil Chhetri (c), Roy Krishna

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Man to watch:

Faslu Rahman (Mohammedan SC): The 27-year-old versatile midfielder was a livewire in the Santosh Trophy for Kerala. He has been among the goals since signing for Mohammedan, scoring two already in the Durand Cup.

Sunil Chhetri (Bengaluru FC): Accolades are not enough to describe Chhetri’s hunger and ability. A sensational free-kick against Goa was his third goal of the Durand Cup. He scores them early too, with all his three coming in the first half.

Did you know?

• Chhetri scored a brace the last time these two sides met in 2014

Telecast

The Mohammedan SC vs Bengaluru FC match will take place at the Salt Lake Stadium. The game will kick off at 6 pm IST. The same will be telecasted on Sports18 – Sports18 1 SD & HD, Sports18 Khel (Hindi Commentary). It will also be streamed on Voot and JioTV.

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