Mumbai City FC vs Punjab FC lineups, team news, prediction and preview

The Islanders will look to win their home fixture against the Shers.

After the international break, the Islanders will be back in action on Tuesday evening in the Indian Super League. They will lock horns against the Shers who recently lost their fixture against the Highlanders at home.

Punjab are still in a good position despite losing some points in previous matches but they will look to bounce back when they face Mumbai City FC.

With 12 points in seven games, they will take on the Islanders who have 10 points from seven games. Both teams will be aiming to improve their performance and climb the standings in the upcoming matches.

The Stakes

Mumbai City FC

Not many people expected Mumbai City FC to be sitting at the ninth spot after the international break. Surely due to some changes in the team, the players took some time to adapt but overall the Islanders need to be better. They are creating chances but are not able to finish those into goals.

Punjab FC will be a good test for them and they will look to use their home advantage to get a win. If they win this fixture they will climb up to the fourth spot in the table. Kraky’s men will have to give their best to beat the Shers.

Punjab FC

The Shers will be very disappointed with the last match result as they lost a good opportunity to get three points at home. Despite being a man advantage they failed to score a goal and lost the match by 1-2. Scoring goals have been a problem for them lately as they are relying too much on Luka Majcen upfront.

Scoring against the Islanders away from home will surely be a big challenge for them. They will have to compact and make a good plan to counter Mumbai’s astute defence. They will have to either win this fixture or get a draw to get their confidence back and stay in the top four position in the table.

Injury and Team News

Both teams are expected to have a fully fit squad available for the match.

Head-to-Head

Total Matches Played: 3

Mumbai City wins: 3

Punjab FC wins: 0

Draws: 0

Predicted Lineups

Mumbai City FC

Phurba Lachenpa (GK); Valpuia, Mehtab Singh, Tiri, Nathan Rodrigues; Brandon Fernandes, Yoell van Nieff, Jermey Manzorro; Lallianzuala Chhangte, Nikos Karelis, Bipin Singh

Punjab FC

Ravi Kumar (GK); Abhishek Singh, Suresh Meitei, Ivan Novoselec, Leon Augustine; Vinit Rai, Filip Mrzljak, Nikhil Prabhu; Nihal Sudeesh, Luka Majcen, Ezequiel Vidal

Players to Watch

Nikos Karelis (Mumbai City FC)

Karelis has scored five goals till now in the league and is a key player for Kratky. He is someone who likes to stay up front and waits to get the ball. He is a lethal finisher who is capable of finishing from outside the box as well.

At the start, he did take some time to adapt to his new club but right now he is in good form and will look to keep scoring and continue to help his club. There are a lot of expectations from him this season and surely he is very much capable of leading his team’s frontline. He will be a big test for Punjab’s defence in this fixture.

Luka Majcen (Punjab FC)

After coming back from the injury, Luka is wearing a mask in every match to protect his face. Due to that mask, he is struggling a bit in front of the goal. But still, he will be a threat to the Islanders for sure. Majcen is a lethal goalscorer who can score from anywhere.

He is probably the best player in the team. The Norweigan Bakenga is not able to perform as per expectations and Majcen have the big responsibility to score. Facing Islanders away from home will be a tough task and Majcen will have to make sure to not miss any chance to score. With his leadership upfront Punjab FC can get points away from home.

Did you Know?

• The winner of the last meeting was Mumbai City FC
• When Mumbai City leads 1-0 at home, they win 70% of their matches.
• The average number of goals in meetings between Mumbai City and Punjab FC is 4.33

Telecast

The game between Mumbai City FC and Punjab FC kicks off at 07:30 PM IST at the Mumbai Football Arena, Mumbai on November 26th, 2024.

Live telecast of the fixture will be available on Sports18 Network (Sports18 1/VH1 Channel). Live streaming of the game will be available on the JioCinema app. Viewers from abroad can use OneFootball to stream the game

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