Bengaluru, Goa eye maiden title victory
MUMBAI: Pipped at the post by a common nemesis in the past, Bengaluru FC and FC Goa will take another shot at glory when they square off in the final of Indian Super League on Sunday.
Both the teams made it to the summit clash, to be played at the Mumbai Football Arena, in rather contrasting manner.
Bengaluru had sealed their place in the final for the second successive year with a 3-0 win against Northeast United FC in the second leg of the play-off, recovering from a 2-1 defeat in the first leg. Goa, despite a 1-0 loss to Mumbai City FC in the second leg semi-final, made it to the final on better aggregate, having won the first leg 5-1.
Goa were the runners-up in 2015, while Bengaluru ended up second best last season. Coincidentally, both the teams had lost to Chennaiyin FC in their respective summit clashes.
Going by history, Bengaluru have edge against Goa. In four meetings between the two teams, Bengaluru have won thrice while Goa’s only win came in a tight clash (4-3) last season, in which Bengaluru were down to 10 men after goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu was sent off.
The in-form Goa will pin their hopes on 36-year-old star striker Ferran Corominas of Spain, who is the leading scorer this season with 16 goals to his name.
Corominas has only got better as the tournament has progressed and is in line for his second successive Golden Boot award. Apart from the strikes, Corominas has seven assists to his credit. He will be a key player along with compatriot Edu Bedia, who has scored seven goals.the duo form a lethal pair and can breach any defence on their day, and Bengaluru’s could be no exception. Two other important cogs in Goa’s wheel are mid-fielders — Moroccon Hugo Boumous and 26-year old Jackichand Singh.
Added to these names, the likes of Brandon Fernandes, Zaid Krouch and Mandar Rao Dessai make Goa a formidable outfit and the Bengaluru defence could come under immense pressure.