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The focus shifts to Kolkata after a hard-fought but an entertaining draw in Guwahati. Mumbai City FC could have snatched all three points but in the end had to share a solitary point. Mumbai City FC will face the high-flying ATK at the Saltlake Stadium in Kolkata on Saturday at 7.30pm.
Mumbai City FC will be confident of a good performance after Rowllin Borges and Modou Sougou returned from their injuries to bolster their chances. Rowllin performed brilliantly in the centre of the park, winning crucial tackles whereas Sougou who was frequently targeted by the NorthEast United FC defenders will be the key for the Islanders.
A win in Kolkata would not only earn three important points but a much-needed boost for the next matches. The Islanders know that the task would not be an easy one but with Amine Chermiti coming back among the goals, a positive result is very much a possibility. The Tunisian hitman has now scored three goals from five matches and all three coming away from home. With Sougou fit, Amine will be ready to pounce on every opportunity presented to him.
After two disastrous seasons, ATK called for a major reshuffle and made a statement of intent after they brought back their title-winning coach from season 1, Antonio Habas. Their summer rebuild continued with high-profile signings of Roy Krishna and David Williams, both from Wellington Phoenix among other big names.
ATK are early table-toppers this season even after losing the opening match against Kerala Blasters. Habas’ men thumped new-boys Hyderabad FC 5-0 with David Williams and Edu Garcia scoring a brace. They followed it up with an away victory against Chennaiyin FC and then another home win against Jamshedpur FC. But their strikers fired blanks when they faced Odisha FC in their fifth game.
ATK have been riding on the performances of David Williams and Roy Krishna who have scored three goals each for the club. With three wins from their first five matches, ATK are the the table-toppers, after scoring 10 times and conceding just thrice, and also are now looking like the team to beat.
Jorge Costa will be a relieved man as he announced a clean bill of health for the Islanders ahead of a key game.
Habas has confirmed that ATK will be without the injured pair of Pronay Halder and John Johnson for tomorrow’s clash.
Mumbai City FC head coach Jorge Costa said, “ATK play very different from all the other teams in the league. They play really well and play as a team. They have players in the front who have great quality. The idea is not to just stop the two forwards but to stop the whole team.”
Mumbai City FC goalkeeper Amrinder Singh, “In our last three games, we’ve been making mistakes as a team – mistakes we cannot be making at this level. We’ve been working to rectify them and we’re ready to give our all tomorrow.”
Mumbai City FC defender Sarthak Golui, “We weren’t satisfied with just a point in Guwahati and we need to make amends to our game. We’ve put our previous game behind us. Tomorrow, we are going into the game with our spirits high and three points on our minds.”
The game will kick off at 7.30pm and will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network, Hotstar and Jio TV for all viewers in India.
