The third fixture of Matchday 15 of the 2023-24 Indian Super League season will see second-placed Goa welcome Mohun Bagan Super Giant at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao from 7:30 PM IST on Wednesday.
While Manolo Marquez Roca has done a fine job at Goa reinstating the Gaurs in the top half of the league standings after taking over the club during the off-season, Antonio Lopez Habas finds himself at the start of another new spell at Mohun Bagan Super Giant after the Kolkata-based club parted ways with Juan Ferrando in the midst of the season.
Current Form
The Gaurs haven’t lost any fixture in the ongoing ISL season and head coach Marquez would be hoping to extend their unbeaten streak against the Mariners at home.
Marquez’s men have 28 points from 12 matches courtesy of eight wins and four draws, with two of those draws coming against league leaders Odisha. Since, the resumption of the league season, the Margao-based club has won 2-0 against Hyderabad followed by a 1-1 draw against the Kalinga Warriors.
MBSG is currently in the fourth position in the league standings with 23 points from 12 matches, having won seven of those fixtures while they have tasted three defeats at the hands of Mumbai City, Goa, and Kerala Blasters.
The reigning ISL champions resumed the 2023-24 league season with a 2-2 draw against arch-rivals East Bengal in the Kolkata Derby followed by a 2-0 win against Hyderabad marking a relatively successful return for Antonio Lopez Habas in the Mariners’ dugout.
Head to Head Record
Historically, Mohun Bagan Super Giant has had the upper hand in this fixture across all competitions, having defeated Goa 5 times so far. On the other hand, Goa has won 3 out of 9 matches with two of those victories coming in the ISL.
The reverse fixture in the league saw Goa defeat MBSG 4-1 at the Vivekananda Yuba Bharati Kirirangan, with Noah Sadaoui scoring a brace with Victor Rodriguez and Carlos Martinez scoring a goal each. Dimitri Petratos scored the consolation goal for the home side at the brink of the half-time whistle.
Team News
For Goa, midfielder Borja Herrera is suspended after picking up his fourth booking of the ongoing season in the match against Odisha. Marquez would have a solitary overseas player on the bench in case he wants to strengthen the midfield during the match.
Hugo Boumous has 62 goal contributions in the ISL for Goa, Mumbai City, and MBSG
The MBSG head coach clarified his chance to remove Hugo Boumous from the squad citing the limitation on overseas players as per the ISL rule. Habas is backing Joni Kauko who might feature in the starting XI against Goa alongside Deepak Tangri who served his suspension in the 2-0 win against Hyderabad.
The Spaniard said,
“I had to take a similar decision to cut out Manuel Lanzarote. Now, I had to take this technical decision. We need to respect that another player like Joni Kauko is coming in, it’s my decision at the end of the day.”
Predicted Starting XIs
Goa (4-2-3-1): Arshdeep Singh; Seriton Fernandes, Odei Onaindia, Carl McHugh, Jay Gupta; Rowlin Borges, Ayush Dev Chhetri; Boris Singh, Brandon Fernandes, Noah Sadaoui; Carlos Martinez
Mohun Bagan Super Giant (3-5-2): Vishal Kaith; Sumit Rathi, Hector Yuste, Subhasish Bose; Manvir Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Joni Kauko, Sahal Abdul Samad, Kiyan Nassiri; Jason Cummings, Dimitri Petratos
Prediction
The fans can expect another thriller on their plate with two Spaniards who have lifted the ISL title in the past about to go loggerheads with their different philosophies but a similar aim of coming out victorious from the battle of the titans. At home, the Gaurs would be favorites with the Uzzo support backing them from the stands.