A high-profile encounter between two Indian Super League elite forces ATK Mohun Bagan and Mumbai City is up next in the 2022 Durand Cup.
The Islanders will be taking on the Green and Maroon battalion from the city of joy at their fortress in Match No. 4 of Group B. The historic Salt Lake Stadium will be the host of this raging battle of Eastern and Western flag-bearers of Indian football.
After dominating the country’s top-flight league and announcing themselves to the continental stage, the Sky Blues are now aiming toward Asia’s oldest existing tournament. Des Buckingham and the boys had a great start to their debut Durand Cup fixture and are now looking forward to sustaining further the same momentum. It is going to be an action-packed saga as both of them have fielded a full-fledged roster for this competition.
Before their merger with ATK, Mohun Bagan finished as the runners-up of the 2019 Durand Cup and is going to participate for the first time since then. The presence of the Mariners adds more prestige to this edition and raises the bars of the competition by fielding their first team to the cup fixtures. They have been drafted in a group of death where the likes of Mumbai City, Rajasthan United, and the arch-rivals East Bengal are also sweating out to make it through.
Current Form
It was a tough day at the office for Mariners against Rajasthan United
The Kolkata-based outfit suffered one of the biggest defeats in the opening fixture where they ended up as the losing side in a high-scoring saga. Rajasthan United, a second-division club in I-League registered a thumping win over the Mariners on a final scoreline of 3-2.
The game was tied at 2-2 when the clock reached the 90 minute-mark but then the Arunachali teenager Gyamar Nikum went on to score the winning goal in the injury-time period.
On the other hand, Mumbai City’s opening fixture went down exactly as the gaffer Des Buckingham must have planned it. The Islanders kick-started their maiden Durand Cup campaign with a convincing 4-1 victory over the Indian Navy side.
The West Coast Brigade saw their foreign knights Rostyn Griffiths, Alberto Noguera, Greg Stewart and Jorge Pereyra Diaz in sky blue colours of MCFC for the first time while the captain’s armband was handed over to the local lad Rahul Bheke.
Head to Head record
Since the grand merger of ATK and Mohun Bagan, the newly founded entity has quarrelled with Mumbai City five times in the Indian top-flight league. The Mariners are yet to register their first win against the Maharashtrian outfit as the current head-to-head count stands as 4-0 in favor of the sky blue. The two combatants also found themselves against each other in the Grand Finale of the 2020-21 season where MCFC graced the champions podium and fueled the rivalry.
The most recent chapter of this rivalry was the only instance where ATKMB was able to force their counterparts into dropping match-points. It was the Match No. 80 of the previous season which took place at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium of Fatorda and ended on a 1-1 settlement at full-time. Where David Williams’ 9th-minute goal brought Mariners on the driving seat while the lead was quickly demolished by an own-goal of ATKMB centre-back Pritam Kotal.
Mumbai’s last five visits to the Salt Lake Stadium resulted in one win, one draw and three losses. The last time Islanders emerged victorious at this venue was back in the 2015 ISL campaign where they defeated the home side ATK on a 3-2 final scoreline. Meanwhile, the recent Rajasthan United fixture was ATKMB’s first major domestic game at their designated home turf.
Team News
Lallianzuala Chhangte donning his new No. 7 netted a brace against the Indian Navy
It is being speculated that Des Buckingham will be doing rotations with his Starting Eleven to offer enough gametime to his entire roster. Hence we may get to see some of the benched players from the previous fixture making it to the eleven, especially Lallianzuala Chhangte who scored a brace in his cameo substitute appearance. It’s a need of the hour for Mohammad Nawaz to impress his coach in order to regain his first-choice goalkeeper status.
Juan Ferrando’s eleven against Rajasthan United had a mix of youth and experienced names lining up together. The star signings Florentin Pogba and Ashique Kuruniyan wore the Green and Maroon kits of ATK Mohun Bagan for the first time. Another new signing, the guardian glovesman Vishal Kaith can make his debut against Mumbai replacing Arsh Shaikh at the ATKMB goal-line.
Predicted Starting XIs
ATK Mohun Bagan (3-4-3): Vishal Kaith; Pritam Kotal, Florentin Pogba, Sumit Rathi; Lenny Rodrigues, Hugo Boumous, Carl McHugh, Joni Kauko; Kiyan Nassiri, Liston Colaco, Ashique Kuruniyan
Mumbai City (4-2-3-1): Mohammed Nawaz; Amey Ranawade, Rahul Bheke, Rostyn Griffiths, Mandar Rao Desai; Apuia Ralte, Ahmed Jahouh; Lallianzuala Chhangte, Greg Stewart, Vikram Pratap Singh; Jorge Pereyra Diaz
Prediction
It’s a must-win game for the Mariners in order to keep their knockout round hopes alive hence there’s no second thought that they’ll be leaving no stone unturned to claim three match-points. However, the task to defeat this Mumbai City side is much more difficult, especially after their flawless outcome in the opening fixture. As per the current form and every other aspect, the Islanders are currently standing with higher chances of triumphing in this contest.
