Bengaluru beat Dempo in U16 Youth League, through to final round

Bengaluru FC Media 

Goals on either side of the break from Amay Morajkar and Lalrintluanga Chawnglut gave Bengaluru FC U16s a 2-0 win over Dempo and qualification to the final rounds of the U16 Y-League at the Duler Stadium, in Goa, on Wednesday. Needing just a point to progress, the Blue colts refused to leave things to chance with solid performance that saw them finish atop the Rest of India, Zone-1 standings with three wins in as many games.

The opening goal came in the 11th minute when Saqlain Khan was brought down at the edge of the penalty area. Amay’s perfectly placed free-kick beat the wall and went past the reach of the Dempo ’keeper, giving BFC the lead. 

John Kila made just one change to the BFC side that had won against Sporting Clube de Goa on Monday with the suspended Nonganba Singh replaced by Lalrintluanga. The midfielder’s through pass come closest to doubling the lead but for Lalrinzuala Lalbiaklana, whose shot could only rattle the Dempo woodwork. 

Refusing to sit back, the Blue Colts continued to dominate proceedings and twenty minutes into the second half, a strike from 30 yards saw Lalrintluanga double BFC’s lead. 

“I am very happy with the performance of these boys. We’ve had little time to prepare but they’ve gelled well together and the results are there for all to see. We are excited to have made it through to the final round but it’s going to be tougher and there’s a lot of work to be done,” said Kila following the game. 

The Blues wrapped up their group commitments in dominating fashion scoring ten times and conceding just once and Kila lays it down to discipline. “We trained these young boys on the pitch and in the gym, giving them a mentality to win football matches. It was a balanced effort from defending well at the back and attacking with discipline and we hope we can do the same in the final rounds.” 

The final rounds of the U16 Y-League are scheduled to begin in January.

Bengaluru FC colts beat Sporting in U16 Youth League

Bengaluru FC Media

A strong display of attacking football from Bengaluru FC’s U16 Academy side saw them go top of the charts in the U16 Y-League with a 4-0 win over Sporting Clube de Goa at the Duler Stadium, in Goa, on Monday. Following up on their victory over Salgaocar in the opening match on Sunday, the Blue Colts have now scored eight goals and conceded just one in the Rest of India, Zone-I group.

The young Blues attacked from the word go with Rahul Rajan having a go in the opening minutes, followed by tries from Lalrinzuala Lalbiaklana and Nonganba Singh. Rahul made it two goals from as many games when Lalrinzuala’s square pass found him unmarked in the area to slot home the opener in as early as the 9th minute.

The John Kila-coached side went in at the break having doubled their advantage with midfielder Amay Morajkar’s perfectly placed strike finding the top corner from over 25 yards. 

Rahul turned provider as a reverse of the first goal allowed the 16-year-old to grab his third assist of the group stages, setting up Lalrinzuala for the Blue Colts’ third on the day. Winger Nonganba made it 4-0 with a neat finish in the 64th minute, only to receive his marching orders for a second bookable offense moments later.

The Blue Colts will face Dempo SC U16s needing just a point to qualify to the final rounds from the Rest of India Zone-I, at the same venue on Wednesday.

Difficult to think of a top league without top I-League teams: Sunando Dhar

CEO of I-League appeared unfazed about Sporting Clube de Goa’s exit and termed it as unfortunate. Dhar was present at the Garden City today inaugurating the Parikrama Champions League at the Bangalore Football Stadium. He added, “We were talking to everyone about the restructuring of Indian football. Nothing was finalized and everyone was kept in the loop. But Sporting didn’t want to wait that long.”

Apparently, few new teams have shown interest to be part of the I-League and now that the deadline has been extended, AIFF is confident of getting more bids. 

Interestingly while the Goan fans have shunned I-League in past few seasons, ISL is running packed houses. If they had the kind of fan base that an East Bengal or a Mohun Bagan or a Bengaluru FC has today, they couldn’t have pulled out of the league. The fans wouldn’t allow them to do so. Unfortunately that kind of fan base is missing in Goa. 

The fans have increased in Bengaluru, the North East, in Kolkata, and also in other places barring Goa.

On the ISL merger, in which a team per state was an ISL plan, however, for a National League, the best teams should play. In the history and fans, there isn’t a better team that Mohun Bagan or East Bengal in India. 

Dhar sounded confident about the presence of the Kolkata giants, “Don’t think there is anyone looking at a top league without Bagan or East Bengal. The discussions are going on and we hope to reach a conclusion. Not to forget Bengaluru FC, who has been the best team in last three years and it is difficult to think of a top league without the top team.” 

Bengaluru fail to earn full-points against 10-men Sporting

I-League Media  

AIFF Media  

Bengaluru FC came back from two goals down but couldn’t do enough to eke out a win against a ten-man Sporting Clube de Goa at the Fatorda Stadium, in Goa, on Sunday. The game ended 2-2 after skipper Sunil Chhetri struck once in each half after a freak Mascarenhas goal and an Odafa Okolie strike gave the hosts a lead.

Bengaluru were dealt with an early blow after defender Curtis Osano had to be replaced by Keegan Pereira after the former pulled his groin just fifteen minutes into the game. The home side took the lead with a freak goal just two minutes later after Lalthuammawia Ralte’s clearance from a Lalchhuanmawia back-pass rebounded off an onrushing Marcus Mascarenhas and bounced into the Bengaluru goal.

The Blues tried their best to reduce the deficit recycling well in midfield to let Udanta and Chhetri attack the flanks. Striker Kim Song Yong came close to scoring the Blues equalizer but a cross into the box from Udanta was inches away from the diving North Korean.

Against the run of play, Sporting extended their lead through a long-range shot from Odafa Okolie. The Nigerian striker collected a pass from Mahmoud Al-Amna before taking a shot that found its way past a diving Ralte in the Blues’ goal.

But Bengaluru clawed right back into the tie at the death of the first half when Loveday Okechukwu brought down John Johnson in the box and referee Santosh Kumar promptly pointed to the spot where Chhetri found the Blues’ opener from. Booked for the foul, Loveday received marching orders only a minute later when he hacked down Udanta while the winger was charging down the right.

Starting the second half with a goal to show for and a man more than Sporting, Bengaluru switched gears, leaving the hosts to defend deep. Michael Collins came close to getting Bengaluru an equaliser and what could have been his first goal for the Blues only to see his goal-bound low drive pushed out by Arindam Bhattacharya.

Bengaluru eventually did find their equaliser when Chhetri tapped into an empty goal after Daniel Lalhlimpuia’s cross fell perfectly for the skipper. The Blues ventured forward with intent and came close to finding a winner when a strike from inside the area by Lalchhuanmawia went inches high of the Sporting frame.

The result leaves Bengaluru second on the table, level on points with Mohun Bagan, who have a game in hand over the Blues. Westwood’s men return to AFC Cup duties as they face defending Champions Johor Darul Ta’zim at the Kanteerava Stadium, on Wednesday. 

10-men Sporting Clube de Goa with help of Odafa's brace sinks Bengaluru

AIFF and Bengaluru FC Media 

Bengaluru FC fell to their second defeat of the season after an Odafa Okolie brace handed Ashley Westwood’s men a 2-1 defeat against Sporting Clube de Goa. CK Vineeth drew level for the Blues who had fallen behind in the 9th minute only for the Nigerian striker to give a 10-man Sporting the win with a goal in the second half.

Crowd at Sree Kanterava Stadium could hardly settle down when Bengaluru kicked-off a series of attack. They could have easily gone ahead within the first minute. They forced the first corner in the 6th minute of the game, but the effort from the debutante Michael Collins sailed over the crossbar.

Much to the horror of the vociferous home crowd, Flaming Oranje went ahead from a goal from veteran Odafa Oniyeka Okolie. The match was only 11th minute old when central defender John Johnson along with the ball came out from the box, after losing possession, he failed to fall back on time, therefore leaving dangerous striker open, Odafa receives the ball, and calmly places behind the net.  

Sporting enjoyed the ball possession for the next 15 minutes superbly controlled by Oranje midfielder Densil Theobald. 

In the 20th minute of the game, a foul was committed on Odafa. The free kick from a dangerous position, got deflected via Bengaluru FC player for a corner. While the corner was about to be taken, Sporting defender Ravanan elbowed Alwyn Goerge inside the box. Referee Venkatesh flashed yellow in no time. That was the second booking for Ravanan earning match suspension for the rest of the game. 

Quite unnecessary on Ravanan’s part considering his team was leading at that time. 

The last 15 minutes of the first half saw relentless attacks from the Blues with no joy in their way, perhaps much to do with Kim Song Yong and Chhetri’s off-form today and stout defending from Loveday and company. 

Luck was not on hosts’ favor till the first quarter of the second half, when a series of attacks failed to see the back of the net. 

Meanwhile, Ashley Westwood brought in speedy Beikhokhei for Thoi Singh.

Much needed equalizer came on Bengaluru’s was came from CK Vineeth in the 64th minute when his shot via deflection went past Sporting keeper Arindam. 

The eleven thousand strong spectators joy was short lived when a powerful shot from the top of the box from Odafa gave 10-men Sporting Clube De Goa a 2-1 lead. 

Despite playing with one player less, Sporting enjoyed their share of attacks primarily constituted by Odafa. Their keeper Arindam too had an excellent outing today, coming accurate in most of the time. 

Odafa was adjudged the Hero of the match. 

Bengaluru FC take on DSK Sivajians at home on Wednesday, February 10. 

Collins could debut for Bengaluru as they face Sporting Clube De Goa tomorrow

AIFF & Bengaluru FC Media 

Current leaders of Hero I-League after 5th round, Bengaluru FC is back on their home turf when they take on Sporting Clube de Goa tomorrow at Sree Kanteerava Stadium. After Blues attaining an important away win against Kingfisher East Bengal last week, they will play two more home games in the following week.

Goa Pro League winner Sporting Clube de Goa, popularly known as Flaming Oranje, are coming from a hard-fought away loss against Shillong Lajong FC. Their coach Mateus Costa is content with 4 points that his team garnered so far, “We played well in our last match, and however, the result did not go in our favour.” He further added, “It is always good to snatch points in an away match, we’ll go all-out for win.”

”We are playing three home games on the trot; we are looking forward to it. Regardless of the result, Sporting Goa got a good team. We need to ensure we work hard as we did against KEB”, Bengaluru FC Gaffer, Ashley Westwood sounds positive ahead of the humdinger. He further added, “You need to win home games to win the league and one of our matches is against Mohun Bagan. If we don’t get results tomorrow, then the match against Mohun Bagan will become more important, we have to keep the momentum going.”

Ashley sounded skeptical about fielding the new recruit Michael Collins, “He’s very similar to Joshua Walker, a like for like. He’s fit, has been training with us since last Sunday. He has not played a match over last one month, probably lacks match fitness.”

Captain Sunil Chettri, who also joined the pre-match press conference, sounds optimistic before the tie, “We’ve had a good pre-season and that is why you’ll see players like Eugeneson, Thoi, Rino, and me fit.”

Eugeneson Lyngdoh’s hairline fracture against Mumbai FC will force Bengaluru coach to look for an alternative in tomorrow’s match, and he has a plenty to choose from. Bengaluru’s fulcrum on the field will be out for a few weeks.

Goalkeeper Amrinder Singh too sustained an injury against Kingfisher East Bengal, the team think tank will take a final call tomorrow on him whether he is fit to play or sit out on the reserve bench. Salam Ranjan Singh and Udanta Singh are also out of consideration for tomorrow’s match.

All-fit Flaming Oranje will be missing talented Rowllin Borges, who is also representing India in the South Asian Games. 

Bengaluru thrash Sporting Clube, keep undefeated record intact

AIFF and Bengaluru FC Media

Joshua Walker, Rino Anto, Thoi Singh, and Beikhokhei scored goal apiece to keep Bengaluru FC undefeated against Sporting Clube de Goa.   

Sporting kicked-off the game from left to right, they looked keen for an early breakthrough through their comeback man Odafe Okolie. 

Bengaluru FC missed the services of midfielder duo - Siam Hanghal and local lad Shankar Sampingiraj, away with the India Under-23 team playing the AFC Championship. The only Karnataka connection in both the starting eleven was in Hubballi boy, left full back of Sporting Chinta Chandrashekar Rao, who had a fairly decent outing. 

Disaster struck Sporting in the 22nd minute when skipper Anthony Wolfe tumbled and fell on his left shoulder along with Curtis Osano. He was stretchered out of the ground and replaced by Marcus Masceranhas. 

The much awaited goal came in the 32’ minute from a sublime freekick from super consistent Eugenson Lyngdoh which Joshua Walker headed to perfection. 

Crowd witnessed glimpse of vintage Odafe in the first half, he flummoxed Bengaluru defense only to find keeper Lalthuammawia Ralte with several brilliant saves. 

After changing ends, Bengaluru made their intentions clear, kept attacking from the right flank, which Sporting failed to plug. Another attack from the right flank, build around Sean Rooney, right full back Rino Anto came from behind, attacked the ball and put calmly to the goal. 

Thoi Singh and Beikhokhei joined the goal scoring party in the 60th and 80th minute of the game. 

Sporting Clube reduced the margin 82nd minute through Victorino Fernandes. The travelling ball on goal was not cleared to perfection by John Johnson that ultimately ended at the back of his own team’s net.

Keeper Lalthuammawia Ralte was awarded the played of the match. 

Bengaluru meet bottom-rung Sporting Clube de Goa at home

AIFF & Bengaluru FC Media 

Already confirming second best spot after midway of the Hero I-League, the team from the Garden City, Bengaluru FC meet the bottom-rung team Sporting Clube de Goa. 

The JSW Group-owned team have been unbeaten against Sporting in I-League. Playing the away encounter last month, they thrashed Sporting 3-1 and in the last season, Bengaluru played a 0-0 draw at home, and in the away game they signed-off the league in style by winning 2-1. 

Gaffer Ashley Westwood believes his team are peaking at the right time. Bengaluru might just want to go for a big win and keep the focus on retaining the title. 

Bengaluru FC have been turning up with good performances despite juggling AFC commitments but Westwood knows that a slip up can be ill afforded given the fewer number of games in the League this season. 

“Every single game is important. We knew that from the start of the season. If there were 15 or 16 teams, we would have a lot more games to play with and be very confident of winning the League. But with only twenty games, people can get lucky if you like but we have to keep believing and putting the pressure on the others,” said the gaffer.

All is not well at the Sporting house – they have only managed five draws and are yet to see a win in the Hero I-League. They are eagerly looking for a win and that may be tomorrow, reckons Trinidad and Tobago international and World Cupper Anthony Wolfe. “We are not scared, anybody can win on a given day. We have to score early and keep frustrating our opponents.” said Wolfe. 

Sporting is gathering momentum lately, they've held their opponents in previous two matches. Odafe Okolie’s addition on loan has added shine on their attack. 

The match between Bengaluru FC and Sporting Clube de Goa is slated to start tomorrow, Tuesday, March 31, 7 PM, at Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bangalore. 

Bengaluru ease past Sporting Clube

Bengaluru FC Media  
  
A first-half brace by Sean Rooney and an acrobatic finish from substitute Beikhokhei less than 10 minutes from time gave Bengaluru FC a 3-1 win over Sporting Clube de Goa at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, on Saturday.

Dominant in a game where his team had more than just a say, Ashley Westwood handed Rooney his first start after a sore groin saw him miss two League games and the striker justified the gaffer’s faith with the pair. Bengaluru wasted no time in making little of Sporting’s home advantage with quick passes and constant threats from the flanks.

Relentless in pursuit of a goal and healthy in possession, Bengaluru finally got what they were chasing in the 29th minute. Bombing down the left, Lalchhuanmawia sent in a cross that missed a leaping Robin Singh only to fall at Rooney’s feet. The striker smartly chose composure over impulse before picking his corner and coolly dinking the ball beyond Ravi Kumar.

Rooney, who turns 26 on Sunday, scored his second in the first minute of added time. Placing the ball 30 yards out after Eugeneson Lyngdoh was hacked down, Rooney’s take beat Kumar all ends up. The Australian's strike had a touch of history to it as the first goal scored from a free-kick for Bengaluru FC.

With trips to Mumbai and Indonesia over the next 10 days, Westwood decided to pull Rooney off for Beikhokhei Beingaichho at half-time and brought on Siam Hanghal for Lyngdoh a little ahead of the hour mark.

Not making much of the two-goal lead, Bengaluru kept making dangerous forays into the Sporting box. However, it was the hosts who scored against the run of play through substitute Anthony Wolfe. Picking the ball up from an Ogba Kalu header, Wolfe beat a high line of defence before his lob sailed over a charging Lalthuammawia Ralte, and bounced into an open goal.

Refusing to sit pretty with possession, Bengaluru kept storming the Sporting box for a third. Robin and Beingaichho were both beaten to the ball from a delightful Lalchhuanmawia cross as the Sporting defence kept soaking in the charge by the visitors. However, the pressure was proving too much to sustain and Beingaichho eventually got the goal that put the game beyond question.

Picked out by Hanghal down the right, Robin sent in a cross that Chhetri hit on target only to see the ball come off a defender and loop perfectly for Beingaichho to acrobatically volley home and kill any chance of sharing a point Sporting wouldn’t have deserved.  

Bengaluru FC take on tough Sporting Clube Goa

Bengaluru FC Media

Bengaluru FC begin a slew of vital away games over the next two weeks with a trip to Goa where they take on bottom-placed Sporting Clube de Goa at the Fatorda Stadium, on Saturday. The Blues, who travel to play Mumbai FC (March 3) and Indonesian side Persipura Jayapura (March 10), will be keen to start the challenging schedule on the right note against a side that's yet to register a win in the League.

Ashley Westwood’s team put aside the disappointment of a 1-4 League defeat at Mohun Bagan to give Bengaluru their first win in Asian football – a 2-1 result over Maldivian side Maziya S&RC at the Kanteerava Stadium, on Tuesday. Shankar Sampingiraj scored a dramatic injury-time winner after Sunil Chhetri scored his second goal in as many games in a victory that Bengaluru will look to use as a springboard.

Though Bengaluru enjoy a 3-0 record over Sporting across competitions, the Blues will be wary of the Goa club who will throw all they have in pursuit of their first win in the League this season. “Sporting Clube are a good side and capable of producing good performances as we saw in the 1-1 draw they had against Pune. Despite being a goal down, they clawed back into the game and for the last half hour, looked like the team that deserved the win. They have good foreigners among their ranks and though their position on the table isn’t the best, we know we will have to churn out a good performance to get something out of this game,” said Westwood on the eve of the game.

The Fatorda has been a happy hunting ground for the Blues who lifted the I-League and Federation Cup titles with wins at the Stadium and are yet to lose a game here.  In fact, the last time the two teams met was at the same venue in the semifinal of the Federation Cup where Bengaluru came away with a 3-0 result.

On the injury front, Bengaluru seem to be without much worry. Sean Rooney, who missed a couple of games with a sore groin, made an appearance as a substitute in the AFC Cup win that also saw the return of Lalchhuanmawia and Rino Anto.  A call on midfielder Joshua Walker, who limped out of the same game with a thigh strain, will be taken by Westwood on Saturday morning. 

File Pic

Anto Xavier signs for Sporting Clube de Goa

After representing country thru the junior ranks, this Austin Town boy is ready for the big stage - Anto Xavier will be seen in Flaming Orange colors in the coming season! Few weeks back, Anto signed a three-year contract with the Goan I-League team Sporting Clube de Goa. 

Primarily a left-half midfielder, Anto has represented India in several age groups - U-16 team in South Africa tour, U-19 tours, and Asian Cup. 

He started with Southern Blues, a B Division team in the BDFA League. He was playing in the Super Division for ADE in the 2012-13 season when he was seriously injured from a terrible challenge against South United. Anto broke his shinbone, got operated, and was out for the rest of the season. 

Anto made a strong comeback this season with A Division team, Students Union at the Kumar Memorial Trophy. Also, he was a part of the Karnataka team in the Santosh Trophy, where he scored a goal. 

[PICS] Matchday Bengaluru FC Vs Sporting Club de Goa

First of many attacks by Sporting Clube in the first half 

John Jonson was thoroughly checked by SCG central defender Gonzalo, it was left to Curtis to deliver few headers from set pieces  

BFC players trying to convince the ref for an offence  

Boima Karpeh played had a good game...

... but perhaps not the same for Sunil

Kalu is not fully fit, he was added later half 

Crafty Johnny Menyongar has his innovative way to take out the ball, when it was locked locked on the feet of an Sporting player 

Cajetan Fernandes' run from the right flank

Cajetan Fernandes' run from the right flank, coach Oscar looks on 

Perhaps the most exciting moment for BFC in the second half, managed to create as many as three goal scoring chances from a set-piece  

[LIVE] Airtel I-League 2013-14 - Bengaluru FC Vs Sporting Clube de Goa

Airtel I-League 2013-14
Round 9  Sunday, November 23, 2013  Bangalore Football Stadium Kick-off: 3 pm
Scorer:	0	-	0	Scorer:
Bengaluru FC: Pawan, Osano, Johnson, Rooney, Menyongar, Chhetri, Thoi Singh, Anto, Beingaichho, Hangal, Perreira  Sub: Manju, Vishal, Malemnganba, Robin Singh, Fanai, Mani, Colaco
Sporting Clube de Goa: Ravi Kumar, Gonsalves, Almeida, Neila, Garcia, Martins, Fernandes, Shirodkar, Rowlin, Karpeh, Lourenco Sub: Devrani, Ogba, D'Mello, Mauvin, Cajetan, Velito, Sourav
LIVE UPDATES
90+4 Match ends. SCG must be satisfied with this result. 90+3 another scare for SCG, almost scored 90'+2 Boima booked, applying time wasting tactic. 90' 4 mins of time added. SCG makes a substitution - Velito in Jovel out 62' first replacement for SCG, Kalu comes in for Victorino. 60' A good cross from Rino, floated for Rooney, cleared by SCG defense 55.30 Beikho to Siam to Thoi. nothing positive yet. 53' corner for BFC 50' SCG weaved a good move from the mid field 46.40 Boima takes the first crack in the second half, no harm done to BFC 46' match starts after lemon break. 45+2; End of first half - 0-0 45'+10' 2 mins added 45' Beikho fouled, free-kick for BFC. Gonsalves booked 43' move from Johnny from the right flank, dribbles two defenders, plays a wall with Thoi. 42' SCG's Offside trap is being executed in perfection! 40 Boima uses his body to beat Keegan, his shot easily collected by keeper. 39 Corner wasted by SCG 38.20 Jovel takes a long shot, from the top of the box, Pawan kumar had to stretch himself. Corner. 35.50' Boima Karpeh fouls Johnson, lucky to get away with 31.50 SGS's Pratesh Sirodkar booked 29.55' Chhetri pulled down, ref continues the game. 26.30' Beikho misses the best chance so far. his shot went wide. 24' SCG has set off-side trap for BFC, six fo far! 20' Chhetri pulled down, ref awards a freekick, Johnny's kick poses to no threat to SCG 19' BFC created 2 quick chances. Chhetri mistimes the first one, Rooney spoils another from an 1-1 position 17' ref calls an offside, much to BFC annoyance. 14.37 SCG relying on speedy counter attack. 12' Menyongar takesd a freekick from a foul, Osano's head fails to find the target. 11.11' quite an exciting encounter so far.  Hello folks, GCSStars.com will go live from 3.45 pm, well before the kick-off!

Bengaluru FC look to get back to winning ways

Airtel I-League comes back to the Garden City, when our own, 3rd placed Bengaluru FC lock horns with 4th placed Sporting Clube de Goa. 

Exactly a month ago, Bengaluru FC played their last home game when they thrashed Dempo 3-1. Post that, their three away matches yielded them only a point and they are looking nothing but getting back to winning ways. 

Both the teams are tied with 14 points (after today’s Shillong Lajong Vs Rangdajied United game, the former too is on 14 but after playing one extra game). A win will ensure them a second/third spot in the points table. 

Stepping out of a comfort zone, Coach Ashley reckons was good, “The away games were pretty close, in last two matches we allowed goal in last minute and also missed a penalty.” 

Sunil Chhetri, who recently became India’s highest goal scorer in international matches, is also looking forward to the Sporting match as he too wants his team to get back to winning ways. 

“They are a good side, we are going to go all out against them. Our target is to bag full points from this match and get back to our winning habit,” said Chhetri. Chhetri will be hoping to maintain his good form, after having scored for India against Philippines and Nepal. 

Sporting Clube de Goa is hoping to end Bengaluru FC’s unbeaten run at home. Having beaten Pune FC and snatching points against East Bengal in their last two matches, the Goan side is high on morale. 

 “We know Bengaluru FC has been playing well at home, but we have come here to win,” said Coach Oscar Bruzon. “Our opponent is a good team, we’re good too, and we know our strength and weaknesses”, he added. 

The Panaji-based team has a strong local presence. The current squad in Bangalore has as many as ten Goan players. They are serious in Youth Development too, five players from this squad touring to Bangalore are product of their Youth Development System. 

Sporting is likely to miss four players due to injury. Mackroy Peixote, Joseph Pereira, Stephen Barretto, and Dawson Fernandes are on the injured list, but the Spanish coach is not worried too much about it. “I have seen Bengaluru FC’s matches on TV and I have chalked out a plan to counter them.” said Bruzon.