Jamshedpur FC finish their Hero Indian Super League campaign with a match against Odisha on Wednesday, and could very well spoil the party for the Juggernauts by picking up a win.
The Men of Steel are full of confidence after picking up a huge victory over Hyderabad FC last time out, and are now third in the recent form guide for the league, a stat that should give them plenty of hope as they head to the Kalinga Stadium.
Odisha is playing for a win and to ensure qualification for the playoff spots, and three individual battles could end up being key for this game.
Pratik Chaudhari vs Diego Mauricio
It’s a big game at the back for Pratik Chaudhari as his defensive partner Eli Sabiá will be unavailable for this one through suspension.
Pratik gave a brilliant account of himself during the second half against Hyderabad, holding his own despite the team being down to ten men, and will have to do the same as he comes up against Diego Mauricio.
The Brazilian has been in imperious form himself. He scored in the last game against Northeast United FC and will fancy himself in this one too with Eli out of the way. Plenty to look forward to in this clash.
Vishal Yadav vs Amrinder Singh
The battle of the goalkeepers will be one to keep an eye out for in this one.
The game finished 3-2 in favour of Odisha the last time these two sides met at the Furnace, and this time too, we could see plenty of goals.
Looking to stop them will be Vishal Yadav and Amrinder Singh, both of whom have been invaluable in recent matches.
Vishal’s penalty save against the Nizams proved to be a match-winning one, and he won’t shy away from outshining his senior adversary, who has seen it all in a short period of time.
Amrinder will try to keep a clean sheet of his own and take his team to the playoffs full of confidence.
Pronay Halder vs Nanda Kumar
JFC are sure to be light at the back with captain Sabiá absent from the squad, but Pronay Halder proved against HFC that he can slot into the back line with ease and protect his keeper at all times.
The stand-in captain on Saturday might have to pull off some similar heroics this time around as Odisha’s attack includes the talented Nanda Kumar.
The forward also scored against NorthEast and wants to keep his shooting boots on. Coming up against an experienced campaigner in Halder, this promises to be an encounter worth watching.
