[AFC Cup] Must win game for Bengaluru against Abahani; hoping for favor from Aizawl against New Radiant

Bengaluru FC Media 

Bengaluru FC will hope for the rub of the green to go their way at more than one venue on Wednesday, when they take on Abahani Limited Dhaka, at the Bangabandhu National Stadium, in Bangladesh, in their final Group E game of the 2018 AFC Cup.

Albert Roca’s men need a win while hoping Aizawl FC claim a point or more against New Radiant SC in Group E’s other fixture, if they are to stand a chance of qualifying for knock-out stages of the Cup for a fourth successive year. Meanwhile, the Maldivian side simply need to match Bengaluru FC’s result, as a better goal difference in the head-to-head comparison between the two sides will pull New Radiant through.

“It’s true that we are in a position where a win may not be enough to qualify, but it has been made clear to the players that we have to remain focused on the task ahead. We cannot take Abahani (Limited Dhaka) lightly, as they are a team with some good players and we have seen that in our travels here before,” said Roca, speaking to the press on the eve of the clash.

Bengaluru’s only previous visit to Dhaka ended in defeat to the Bangladeshi side in the group stages of last year’s AFC Cup campaign with late goals from Saad Uddin and Rubel Miya handing Roca’s men a 2-0 loss. In a more recent meeting between the sides, Daniel Lalhlimpuia scored a 72nd minute winner at the Kanteerava Stadium in March as the Blues began their continental campaign.

The Saiful Bari Titu-coached Abahani side are out of contention for the knockout stages and have won just one of their five games so far this campaign, a 3-0 away victory in Aizawl - their only win across all competitions in the last four months - but Roca believes there is no room for complacency.

“We have always had close games against Abahani Dhaka, as they are difficult to break down and play a different style of football. The conditions in Bangladesh are also quite different from what we are used to, so we will have to be wary if we are to do well and take anything away from this game,” the Spaniard said.

Bengaluru were dealt a late blow when winger Boithang Haokip suffered an injury that kept him out of the traveling squad while right-back Nishu Kumar has joined the team from Kolkata, where he was in action with the club’s reserve squad against Mohammedan Sporting in the 2nd Division League. Meanwhile, Abahani will be missing the services of midfielder Mohammad Fahad, along with the Nigerian duo of attacker Sunday Chizoba and defender Ndukaku Alison who are all suspended.

The game in Dhaka kicks off at 7.15 pm local time (6.45 pm IST) and can be streamed live on the AFC Cup Facebook page. 

Bengaluru - Mohun Bagan face-off in AFC Cup

Bengaluru FC Media

Bengaluru FC will look to get their AFC Cup campaign off to the perfect start when they take on League rivals Mohun Bagan for a second time in four days at the Kanteerava Stadium, in Bengaluru on Tuesday.

Albert Roca’s team created history last November in Doha by becoming the first Indian club to make the final of a continental competition when they played eventual champions and Iraqi side Air Force Club who edged the Blues 1-0. While Roca said his team would draw confidence from that phenomenal run, he admitted that the slate was clean and the attempt for an encore would only be tougher. “What we achieved last season in this competition was special. But now we are back to square one and we will have to work twice as hard. The fact that we made the final last year does give us confidence but it doesn’t let us take anything for granted,” said the Spaniard.

A tweak in the format this year pits two Indian clubs against each other for the first time in the competition, adding to the history that this new yet fierce rivalry Bengaluru and Bagan share.

The two sides played out an entertaining and furiously-paced 0-0 draw on Saturday and with only 48 hours to recover, it would be interesting to see whether Round Two will be as intense on the physical front. “The schedule is punishing and tomorrow’s game will be our fourth in nine days. But we’ve got work around the circumstances and deliver. We had a recovery session on Sunday and I’m confident that the boys will have enough to give what is a very important game, everything,” said Roca.

Though the Blues have been batting indifferent form in the League, there have been a fair number of positives from recent performances that Roca’s boys can take into the game on Tuesday. John Johnson’s return to the side has brought with it some much-needed stability at the back, while young Nishu Kumar has been growing in confidence with every passing game in the left-back position. Eugeneson Lyngdoh was handed a start on Saturday and the midfielder showed glimpses of the confidence he had been missing as the Blues took the fight to Bagan in an inspired second half showing.

New signing Marjan Jugovic, who has AFC experience, got close to 30 minutes on the weekend and it’s left to be seen if Roca deems him ready to start against the Kolkata club.

“The game against Bagan was a tough one but I am very pleased with the way we took the fight to a good team that is contending for the League title. Let’s hope we can finish our chances on Tuesday.”

Meanwhile Bagan will look to use the threat of winger Sony Norde who was kept quiet all evening by the Bengaluru defence.  Coach Sanjoy Sen has options in attack in Jeje Lalpekhlua and Balwant Singh and the latter, in all likelihood, could be handed another start.