PREVIEW: Mumbai needs new team & outlook to take on Highlanders in defining match for both

THIS IS A GAME ABOUT two sides, reeling from big defeats, who are trying to get back on their feet. One of them will be up and running, one of them will sink further; their hopes of making it to the semi-finals all but over.

It will be with such odds that NorthEast United will go up against Mumbai City at Guwahati tomorrow. Both teams are a step away from a top 4 claim; occupying the 5th and 6th spots on the points table. But both franchises have some tough fixtures coming up after this so winning this match may prove to be pivotal in determining the fate of their campaigns.

NEUFC, coming on the back of a demoralising 1-4 defeat to Kerala Blasters at home, will have a slight advantage in terms of having had two extra days to train; and the familiarity of home conditions. They are, however, playing a team that beat them 5-1 in the first leg; so Cesar Farias will want to be extra cautious. 

But Mumbai City no longer look like the team they were back then. The run of home games saw the squad come together to form an intimidating attacking line-up that unsettled some of the best defenses in ISL. They got some back-to-back wins and turned their campaign around. Then came a crushing defeat to ATK at home, followed by travels between every game.

The fatigue set in, and further blow came in the form of international break where they lost their attacking lynchpins Sony Norde and Sunil Chhetri. Discord in the dressing room once again reared its ugly head; and suddenly assistant coach Oscar Bruzon left the franchise.

Anelka had to play full games to make up for the absence of key players, which rendered Mumbai devoid of any guiding hand on the bench during the matches. And suddenly Mumbai City were a shadow of their former self. Things hit rock bottom for them Tuesday night when FC Goa demolished them by a record-setting 7-0 margin.

But the good news for Mumbai is that most of their players are back. Even Sony Norde is scheduled to reach Guwahati on matchday morning. It's still not clear whether he will play, but given the desperate situation, it won't be surprising if he does. 

Team-wise, both franchises are dealing with collective failures here. Once again, NEUFC will have an advantage in this regard; they have had time to work on strategic corrections, while Mumbai have had some 72 hours between the matches, and that included travelling to a new city and acclimatising.

So, as for the Highlanders, they will probably not make a wholesale change in the team. But there are a couple of individual performances that may not go unpunished; even though the coach took full responsibility for the defeat to Kerala. Aiborlang Khongjee especially disappointed that night; he fell short of his marking duties very frequently. Alen Deory also looked directionless and repeatedly gave the ball away. Replacing them with Reagan Singh and Seityasen Singh respectively may not be a bad idea. 

For Mumbai City, though, more complicated shuffling is retired. And there are indications that Anelka is taking steps in the right direction. In the pre-match presser he has declared that he will be playing Sunil Chhetri in his old number 10 position again. The player-coach took on that role by himself ever since Sony and Sunil left on national duty and has been almost absolutely ineffective. His pace has been lacking, and lack of quick placement has left the target man Frederic Piquionne without service. 

What this revelation also means is that Sony Norde is probably going to play. This is the biggie. Sony's highly creative and deadly presence in the left wing has been the most lethal weapon for Mumbai City so far. With Sony on the left, Sunil at 10 and Piquionne up front, Mumbai have a formidable attack that can take down any defence in ISL. They will have to stick to these players if they want to have any chance of making it to the semis. 

Sony's return to the team means Nicolas Anelka can sit this one out; a move that Mumbai City fans will welcome with slow claps. On the right wing, Subash Singh can make a comeback. In terms of last match, he can replace Lalchhuan Mawia, the midfielder who started the last game at left back because the left back, Keegan Pereira, was working the left wing in the absence of Sony Norde. I know; the whole situation is incredibly messed up. But now, Keegan can move back to his natural position at left back and normalcy can be restored. 

But the defence, which was a tad shambolic against FC Goa, needs further reinforcement. Ashutosh Mehta, for example, seemed to have disappeared Tuesday night. Thongkhosiem Haokip had miles of space on the right. So Mehta can perhaps be replaced by Aitor Fernandez. And Kingshuk Debnath can get a start in the central defence, replacing Darren O'Dea, to maintain the foreigner-Indian ratio. And Darren's performance against Goa wasn't exactly glowing either. 

So that's 4 changes and some shuffling; and you have a team that suddenly looks 10 times better than the squad that faced Goa. What this does is that it exposes the complete lack of squad depth that Mumbai City suffer from. The way the team has been built and handled throughout the season reeks lack of foresight. They lost a player like Andre Moritz and didn't do much to find a proper replacement. As a result, the moment they lost a couple of players, their attack got crippled. And now that they have to travel between every game, the twin axes of fatigue and injury will continue to hang over their head for the remainder of the campaign. A small unforeseen problem can cause everything to come undone. And all Anelka can do is hope, "Not today!"

Probable Starting Line-Ups:

NorthEast United FC - Rehenesh TP, Robin Gurung, Carlos Lopez, Cedric Hengbart, Reagan Singh, Silas, Andre Bikey, Seityasen Singh, Simao Sabrosa, Sanju Pradhan, Nicolas Velez

Mumbai City FC - Subrata Pal, Keegan Pereira, Kingshuk Debnath, Pavel Cmovs, Aitor, Cristian Bustos, Selim Benachour, Sony Norde, Sunil Chhetri, Subash Singh, Frederic Piquionne