League leaders Mumbai City look to break the unbeaten streak of Chennaiyin FC this season at Fatorda Stadium. Des Buckingham men are willing to extend their lead on top while Marina Machans are desperate to go back to winning ways after drawing their last two matches. It's a matchup between the best attack against the best defense in the league this season.
MCFC vs CFC Match Details :
When: Wednesday, 15 December
Time: 19:30 (IST)
Where: Fatorda Stadium
MCFC vs CFC Match Preview :
Mumbai City FC have been free-scoring this season and despite taking a little jolt from Jamshedpur FC in the second half of the 4-2 result in their previous game, they registered three consecutive wins in the season and extended their point tally to 12 points on top of the chart. Two points above Hyderabad FC in second. Des Buckingham's side have scored 16 goals so far, the most in the league but had failed to keep a clean sheet since their opening game of the 2021/22 ISL season. It could be a concern but the English manager is reluctant to move away from their fluid attacking style of football. To his joy, Igor Angulo was able to net his fifth of the campaign against JFC with Catatau once again scoring coming on as a substitute. Although the real star of the game was Cassino, the Brazilian playmaker registered two assists in the game.
Bozidar Bandovic's Chennaiyin started the season strongly with back-to-back wins but unexpectedly drew against lowly SC East Bengal and then had to come from behind to snatch a draw out of ATK Mohun Bagan. The coach from Montenegro had stressed defensive solidity conceding only twice impressively after four games, the lowest number of goals allowed in by a team so far in the league. But being a hard side to crackdown have led to fewer goals scored on the other side of the pitch. While star man Lallianzuala Chhangte has come up with goods from the wing, it is the striking department that have let them down. Polish striker Łukasz Gikiewicz, in place of not scoring Rahim Ali, came into the starting lineup last game and assisted the equalizer for Vladimir Koman. Bandovic expects the 34-year-old to start firing when the Hungarian midfielder has netted two goals for the team already.
Recent Form :
Mumbai City FC: WWWLW
Chennaiyin FC: WWDD
MCFC vs CFC Team News :
Both sides have no recurring injury issues from the previous game with Vignesh Dakshinamurthy of Mumbai City FC and Rafael Crivellaro of Chennaiyin FC only the confirmed absentees for each side. Hence, both sides are unlikely to make any changes to the starting lineup.
MCFC vs CFC Expected Lineups :
Mumbai City: Mohammed Nawaz; Amey Ranawade, Moutarda Fall, Rahul Bheke, Rao Dessai, Apuia, Ahmed Jahouh, Vikram Pratap Singh, Gabriel, Bipin Singh, Igor Angulo.
Chennaiyin FC: Vishal Kaith (GK); Ariel Borysiuk, Slavko Damjanovic, Narayan Das, Reagan Singh, Anirudh Thapa, Vladimir Koman, Edwin Vanspaul, Jerry Lalrinzuala, Lukasz Gikiewicz, Lallinzuala Chhangte
MCFC vs CFC Head to Head :
There were close matchups between the two teams last season with eventual champions Mumbai City winning 2-1 over the Marina Machans in the first game while the return fixture produced a 1-1 scoreline. Chennaiyin FC have the edge though with six wins in 14 total meetings compared to five obtained by the Islanders. The rest three have ended in a draw.
MCFC vs CFC Dream11 Team Prediction :
GK: M. Nawaz (MCFC)
DEF: R. Singh (CFC), Fall (MCFC), Bheke (MCFC), N. Das (CFC)
MID: Chhangte (CFC), Jahouh (MCFC),
Cassio (MCFC), Koman (CFC), Bipin (MCFC)
FW: Angulo (MCFC)
Match Prediction: MCFC 2-0 CFC
Chennaiyin FC are a hard nut to crackdown but their lack of scoring threat upfront will come to haunt them in this game. No side in the league looks capable of preventing Mumbai City from scoring in their current form so CFC's unbeaten ideology is at risk on Wednesday.
