East Bengal vs Bengaluru: Preview and Prediction
East Bengal and Bengaluru will square off in ‘Match 107’ of the 2021-22 Indian Super League season at the Tilak Maidan Stadium on Saturday. Both teams are out of the semi-final race and will hence have nothing but pride to play for.
East Bengal has had a season to forget, and quite understandably, they have already started planning for the next season. With 11 points from 19 matches, they are currently occupying last place in the standings.
On the other hand, Bengaluru had a commendable middle phase, but a poor start and a poor finish have crushed their hopes of making it to the semis. The Blues are placed in sixth in the standings, having accumulated 26 points from 19 matches.
Current Form
While East Bengal has been poor all throughout the season, their last few performances have particularly been an exhibition of doom and gloom. The Red and Golds happen to be one of the two teams who have not won any of their last five matches.
Mario Rivera’s men are coming into this match on the back of a 1-1 stalemate against fellow strugglers NorthEast United, whilst they suffered consecutive 1-0 defeats against Mumbai City and Kerala Blasters before taking on the Highlanders.
Bengaluru has also been poor in their last few matches, as they have picked up only three points from their last three fixtures. In their previous outing, Marco Pezzaiouli’s team lost 2-0 against the Mariners.
With this defeat, they blew out whatever hopes they had rekindled with a 2-1 win over Odisha in the preceding game. Before taking on the Kalinga Warriors, the Blues suffered a shocking 2-1 defeat against NorthEast United.
Head to Head Record
The head-to-head statistics between these two teams lie perfectly balanced. East Bengal and Bengaluru have won one each of the three matches they have played among each other, with the other match ending in a stalemate.
That stalemate was played out earlier this season, where both teams shared spoils in a 1-1 draw. A Thongkhosiem Haokip gave the Red and Golds the lead in the first half, but a second-half own goal from Sourav Das helped the Blues get back in the game.
Team News
Marcelo Ribeiro could be reinstated in the East Bengal starting XI
Rivera is expected to make four changes to the team that drew 1-1 against NorthEast United. New signing Ananta Tamang could be handed his debut at the heart of the defense with Franjo Prce making way for him.
Brazilian striker Marcelo Ribeiro is also likely to be reinstated in the starting XI at the expense of Naorem Mahesh. Besides that, Mohammad Rafique and Joyner Lourenco could be replaced by Wahengbam Luwang and Adil Khan respectively.
Similarly, Pezzaiouli is also likely to make four changes to his starting XI after a 2-0 defeat against ATK Mohun Bagan. Goalkeeper Lara Sharma, who had a night to forget, could be replaced by Sharon Padattil.
Besides Sharma, Parag Shrivas was also directly at fault for one of the goals and he could make way for Pratik Chaudhuri. Iman Basafa can be preferred to Ajay Chhetri in a bid to strengthen the midfield, but in doing so, the German tactician might have to balance overseas count by sacrificing Prince Ibara for Leon Augustine.
Predicted Starting Lineups
East Bengal (4-4-2): Sankar Roy; Hira Mondal, Adil Khan, Ananta Tamang, Huidrom Naocha Singh; Fran Sota, Wahengbam Luwang, Sourav Das, Lalrinliana Hnamte; Marcelo Ribeiro, Antonio Perosevic.
Bengaluru (4-3-3): Sharon Padattil; Roshan Naorem, Alan Costa, Pratik Chaudhari, Ashique Kuruniyan; Bruno Ramires, Iman Basafa, Udanta Singh; Leon Augustine, Cleiton Silva, Sunil Chhetri.
Prediction
While both sides have been poor recently, Bengaluru has comparatively had a much better campaign than their opposition. Hence, we have predicted a 1-0 win in favor of the Blues.