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In what’s being billed as a clash of matching philosophies, Carles Cuadrat’s Bengaluru FC will come up against Cesar Ferrando’s Jamshedpur FC at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday with both teams having the chance to get a feel of pole position on the table early in the season.
Cuadrat got life as Bengaluru FC manager in the ISL off to the perfect start when the Blues beat defending champions Chennaiyin FC 1-0 in the season-opener at the Fortress last Sunday.
Jamshedpur FC, meanwhile come into this fixture on the back of a 2-0 win over Mumbai City FC, away from home where debutants Mario Arques and Pablo Morgado got on the scoresheet. Ferrando’s side looked comfortable moving the ball around and their flanks did more than just ruffle the feathers of the Mumbai City FC defence.
The same fixture last season had former Bengaluru FC coach Albert Roca clutching his trousers in despair as he watched his team’s domination come undone by a 90th-minute penalty that Matheus Trindade slotted home.
However, much has changed on the Jamshedpur FC roster since then and Cuadrat is certain that last season won’t be an accurate marker of the opposition his team will face on the day. “Jamshedpur FC now have a Spanish coach who comes in with a wealth of experience and there are four new Spanish players which changes so much. We watched the game the played against Mumbai and like us, they like to move the ball around which makes our game very interesting from a tactical point of view,” said Cuadrat while addressing the media on the eve of the game.
Sunday’s tie against Bengaluru FC could also mark the Indian Super League debut of Australian star, Tim Cahill, who sat out against Mumbai City FC owing to a suspension he picked up in his last competitive game in England. And with Sunil Chhetri on the other side, the game looks set to get more than just a touch of attacking royalty.
Cuadrat, who has engineered a number of Bengaluru FC goals by way of set-pieces, says his team will have to wary of the same threat. “Cahill and Tiri are good in the air, so we have to be careful about those situations. Albert (Serran) and Juanan (Gonzalez) seemed to find some good rhythm in defence and I’m sure we will iron out the small struggles that we faced at the back in some phases of the game last Sunday,” added Cuadrat.
In team news, Subrata Paul continues to serve a three-game suspension he received for an incident involving players from Jamshedpur FC and FC Goa in an ill-tempered Super Cup clash in April 2018. Meanwhile Blues midfielder, Dimas Delgado, who missed the game against Chennaiyin FC with a groin injury, has made steady progress and could be a decision that Cuadrat leaves late.
The game kicks-off on Sunday at 7.30pm and will be broadcast on the Star Sports network, HotStar and Jio TV.
