Mumbai vs NEUFC: Teams who have revived campaigns clash to maintain winning streak
A MEETING OF TWO REVIVED TEAMS will take place tonight. Two teams that got beaten to a corner with multiple defeats in their first few matches, carried out back-to-back revival victories, and today they stand one win away from an entry into the top four.
Occupying the 6th and 7th place on the ISL table with 7 and 6 points to their names, Mumbai City and NorthEast United's encounter tonight has a lot on stake for both the teams. It will decide who gets to turn their two-win comeback into a three-win streak and who gets dealt another blow in their campaign.
What makes this match more interesting is we have seen these teams sweat it out, try different things and finally figure out combinations that work as the ISL progressed. Coaches Nicolas Anelka and Cesar Farias had to deal with a number of issues before they managed to achieve their coveted first wins on their respective 4th matches.
Both teams won their last two games. Both kept clean sheets. Both did it on their home turf. On that respect, Mumbai City can be seen to have an advantage as the match is being played at D Y Patil Stadium. But NorthEast United have overcome the likes of Chennaiyin FC and Atletico de Kolkata on their way here so they cannot be taken lightly.
For Anelka and his assistant coach Oscar Bruzon, the biggest relief would be to finally have a wholesome attacking combination that works for them. After multiple injuries and availability issues, in the previous match against FC Goa, MCFC fielded the combination of Frederic Piquionne, Sunil Chhetri, Sony Norde and Gabriel Fernandes that basically had everything. The lethal trigger-happy striker up front, the creative and thoughtful number 10 behind him, and two fast-paced, swift-crossing intelligent wingers who can keep them supplied from the flanks. The Mumbai City attack that got so much hype before the ISL started has finally come through.
So while Oscar Bruzon once again was asked multiple questions in the pre-match presser about when and how much Nicolas Anelka will play, he remained unfazed, because at this point, the marquee player-manager's presence on the field frankly does not need to go beyond some crowd-pleasing cameos and fill-in roles for the last quarter.
The other departments, too, are doing well. Subrata Paul has been excellent in goal. The defence has been diligent since the 3-1 loss to Pune City; in the last four matches they have only conceded two goals, earning 3 clean sheets. Bruzon made sure to highlight the fact that this good run of forms is the result of a collective team effort,
“What went right is the work, the attitude of the players, the combination, the association between team-mates, knowing when to pass the ball. Many things went right for us. Tomorrow too should be a good fight.”
There's a good chance that Mumbai City will field a starting line-up unchanged from the FC Goa match, which remains their best performance of the season till now. What will be worrying for the team management, though, is that they cannot rotate these players. They drop one, especially from the attack, and the combination breaks and they end up with a weakened team. Same is the case with midfield. And going forward in the ISL this can be a big problem. Last match's goalscorer Frederic Piquionne was frank enough to admit that the second leg is going to be the more difficult part of the tournament,
"With tomorrow's game we'll finish a run of 5 games at home in the first leg and in the second leg we'll face 5 games away. Finishing the tournament in a good position is going to be tough for us so we must do our homework and do well because now we're playing at home."
When the intense travelling kicks in, issues of fatigues and injuries will force the squad depth issue to the fore. How Anelka deals with that problem will determine where Mumbai City finish in this ISL.
For Cesar Farias, tonight marks the beginning of four back-to-back away matches that will see them travel to Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai after Mumbai. This is the litmus test for success, the rite of passage that will prove if his team is worthy of posing tough questions to so-called title contenders. And in that regard tonight's game is a must-win. NorthEast United will want to have their strongest possible team out at D Y Patil Stadium.
Nicolas Velez, who has come off the bench to score in the last 2 matches, may be finally given the start he deserves. Marquee Simao Sabrosa, who has mostly come off the bench following his recovery from injury, may also be on the fray from the outset.
This game, and the next few, will push the NEUFC players to the limits of their mental strengths. Aware of this, Farias stressed on the importance of being mentally prepared for what's coming. As for tonight, he said,
“It's important to be prepared for them mentally. I have great respect for Mumbai, they play an excellent game. The main aim is to get those three points... we believe in our players and in the work that we do, the way we play the game. I'm sure they'll be worrying about us as well. Nobody main as such, we'll be prepared for all of them as the time comes.”
Farias and the thousands of NEUFC fans will be hoping that as they launch into the most difficult part of the season, they find light at the end of the tunnel.
A win for either team will help them establish themselves as a team to be reckoned with in this season. Who comes out on top tonight in this battle of dark horses has the potential to influence the ISL title race in a major way.
Probable Starting Line-Ups:
Mumbai City FC - Subrata Paul, Lalchhuan Mawia, Darren O'Dea, Pavel Cmovs, Ashutosh Mehta, Cristian Bustos, Juan Aguilera, Sony Norde, Sunil Chhetri, Gabriel Fernandes, Frederic Piquionne
NorthEast United FC - Rehenesh TP, Robin Gurung, Cedric Hengbart, Carlos Lopez, Aiborlang Khongjee, Reagan Singh, Bruno Herrero, Andre Bikey, Siam Hanghal, Simao Sabrosa, Nicolas Velez
