A confident FC Goa will look to consolidate their position at the top when they host FC Pune City in an Indian Super League match at the Nehru Stadium in Margao on Friday.
In the ISL points table, FC Goa, Bengaluru FC and Chennaiyin FC stand with 12 points each. However, Goa are placed atop owing to a better goal difference.
FC Goa have played attacking football, scoring a staggering 10 goals in their last two matches, with their midfield and forwards performing like a well-oiled machine.
The duo of Ferran Corominas and Manuel Lanzarote have been lethal, scoring 13 goals in between them. Corominas has scored nine goals, including two hat-trick this season.
Pune City, sitting fifth, have strikers like Marcelino and Alfaro, who are destructive up front and it remains to be seen how the rival defence tackles them.
Pune coach Ranko Popovic believes it is going to be a great challenge for his defenders to stop the duo of Corominas and Lanzarote.
Pune City will miss striker Baljit Singh Sahani due to a red card he received in the previous match against Bengaluru FC.
"It is going to be a interesting as both the teams play an attacking game, have scored lot of goals and at the same time conceded goals. We made silly mistakes that resulted in us losing matches.
"FC Goa are playing attractive game and it is challenge for us to counter them. It is going to be a close contest and the team that commits less error will win tomorrow," Popovic said.
Goa coach Sergio Lobera said "Every match is a different game. We do not know if we will be able to score more goals as they are a good side and play an attacking game like us."
"We have conceded too many goals but we are working hard in this respect and hopefully we succeeded tomorrow," he added.
(With PTI Inputs)
