Preview: Bengaluru FC look extend unbeaten run in Hyderabad FC clash

The Nizams are coming off an awful loss against Mariners.

A chance to close the gap on leaders Hyderabad FC will motivate Bengaluru FC no end when the two teams clash swords in the Indian Super League at the Athletic Stadium in Bambolim on Friday.

Bengaluru are on a nine-game unbeaten run, having turned around a poor start to the season in some style to remain in third place having 23 points from 15 matches.

A win against leaders Hyderabad will see them go level on points with their southern rivals, and that should keep Marco Pezzaouli's charges on their toes.

Hyderabad failed to consolidate their lead at the top after a narrow defeat to ATK Mohun Bagan, leaving Kerala Blasters FC with a golden opportunity to reclaim pole position as they have two games in hand as compared to Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Kerala are placed second with 23 points from 13 outings.

The sub-plot to the encounter is also Bartholomew Ogbeche and Sunil Chhetri facing off. The two joint-highest goal scorers in ISL history will clash against each other as they battle to become the first player to reach the 50-goal milestone in the competition.

Both Chhetri and Ogbeche have scored 49 goals in the competition. Chhetri has scored his 49 goals in 109 matches while Ogbeche has scored 49 goals in 71 matches. The game will also be a battle of some of the best-attacking fullbacks this season.

The Stakes

Bengaluru FC

"We're looking at ourselves, because we're unbeaten in nine games. We've won our last few games, and we're in a better condition after quarantine. We got ten points from the last four games, which has been a good return," said Pezzaouli.

On Hyderabad, he added: "They lost their last game, which is an important point, because it helps us spot some weaknesses. We need to be very compact. They are a very good team in transition, fast players in the offensive areas and Ogbeche is the man in the box, so we need to avoid counters."

Roshan Singh Naorem and Akash Mishra have been a revelation in attack this season. Cumulatively, they have been involved in 12 goals for their teams this season. Roshan has seven-goal contributions (1G + 6A) in his 13 matches while Akash has five goal contributions in 15 matches this season (2G + 3A). No defenders have been involved in more goals in ISL 21-22 than these two.

For the Blues, Cleiton Silva getting back among goals also augurs well as they prepare for the final push in the business end of the season.

Brazilian forward Silva ended a four-game goalless streak as his brace helped Bengaluru come from behind to win 3-1 against Jamshedpur in their last game. Silva took his tally to seven league goals, putting him third in the Golden Boot Race along with Jorge Ortiz (7) and behind Ogbeche (14) and Igor Angulo (8).

Hyderabad FC

Hyderabad lost the last game but have continued to do well consistently throughout the season with Ogbeche at the heart of their goalscoring form and also the Indian youngsters doing well. They have contributed to 22 goals this season. No other teamhas this many contributions from Indians to their team’s goals this season.

"It was the first game we lost in the second leg. We can't win all games in a season. The team was not good in general the other day and we lost against a very good side. We now have to be focused against BFC. The fight is still open for a top-four place for many teams," Marquez said on the road ahead.

On Bengaluru's current upturn in form, he added: "We cannot think about how many points we need. We have to play against BFC and let's see what happens. If we win, we will see things in a different way. If we lose, we have to continue fighting. Nothing will be decided before the last round."

Team News

Bengaluru FC

Prince Ibara will be back from his one match suspension due to his number of yellow cards this season. Nothing new otherwise. Rohit Kumar is injured after coming on as a substitute last game. Yaya Banana has been training and his situation will be assessed tomorrow before inclusion into the squad. Ashique (Kuruniyan) is recovering.

Hyderabad FC

Halicharan Narzary will be unavailable due to a long term injury. Rest of the team is available for selection.

Head-to-Head

Both the teams share balanced record against each other. In the five encounters, three ended in draws and one win went to each side. The Nizams managed a 1-0 victory over the Blues in the reverse fixture.

Probable Lineups

Bengaluru FC: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu (GK), Parag Shrivas, Pratik Chaudhari, Alan Costa, Naorem Roshan Singh, Suresh Wangjam, Bruno Ramires, Danish Farooq, Prince Ibara, Sunil Chhetri, Cleiton Silva

Hyderabad FC: Laxmikant Kattimani (GK), Asish Rai, Chinglensana Singh, Juanan, Akash Mishra, Souvik Chakraborty, Joao Victor, Nikhil Poojary, Joel Chianese, Aniket Jadhav, Bartholomew Ogbeche

Did You Know?

• With seven goals, Bengaluru FC's Cleiton Silva has already equalled his goalscoring record from last season.
• Hyderabad FC are the top scorers of the season so far with 34 goals.
• A win would mean Hyderabad FC equalling last season's overall points of 26 while Bengaluru FC are already above their previous tally by one with 23 at the moment.

Telecast

The match between Bengaluru FC and Hyderabad FC will be played at the GMC Athletic Stadium, Goa, from 7:30 pm. The game will be telecasted live on the Star Sports Network. It will also be live-streamed on Disney+Hotstar and JioTV.

For more football updates, follow Khel Now on Twitter, Instagram and join our community on Telegram.