Things are about to get intense in the Hero Indian Super League as two teams who are vying for the play-off spots are set to clash at the Furnace. Both teams in question have suffered disappointing defeats in their previous game and will use all their might this time around to set the record straight. When Jamshedpur FC host Mumbai City FC, it will indeed be a big match and a great fixture to kick-start this weekend’s ISL action.

After a shaky start to the season, Mumbai City FC’s resurgence to the top half of the league has been one of the stories so far this season. Head coach Jorge Costa has been successful in assembling a team that can compete with the best. The foreign players have clicked and the whole squad has adapted to the manager's methods.

Meanwhile, Jamshedpur FC suffered only their second loss of the season at the hands of ATK. The two-time ISL winners had the perfect plan in place to beat Jamshedpur FC -  surrendering possession to the away side and relying on the quality of players they had on the break. They scored from two precise set-pieces taken by Manuel Lanzarote and held on resolutely to their lead.

But Jamshedpur FC at home are a different proposition altogether! This is supported with the fact that the Men of Steel are yet to lose at home. Jamshedpur FC waste no time in asserting their dominance by taking charge of the possession and create a lot of chances in the opposition half. Mumbai City FC have an uphill task ahead if they are to hand Jamshedpur FC their first loss of the season at home.

However, Jamshedpur FC have a number of crucial players missing ahead of this all-important clash. Talking on the injuries piling up for his side, Cesar Ferrando said, "The problem is not just Tim Cahill’s injury. It’s the accumulation of injured players that we have like Michael and Raju Gaikwad. Soosai is a big loss because he is different and he has the ability to beat players which is a very important quality in football but I am a coach and I have to work with the players I’ve got and have the best possible line-up for tomorrow."

When these sides first met right at the start of the league, Jamshedpur FC registered an impressive away win. Cesar spoke about this in context with tomorrow’s game, “I think Mumbai are a good team and a tough team to play against. In the first match, we won away but we suffered a lot in the second half and scored the second goal in the last minutes of the match. After that they lost heavily against FC Goa but they came back with winning momentum which is commendable."

Cesar Ferrando also reiterated the importance of the home support ahead of this big clash by saying, “The behavior of our fans is fantastic. They always support the team. I am sure that tomorrow they will come out to support the team, they are fantastic and are always behind the team. I am very happy with my fans and I hope we can win for them."

Mumbai City FC are yet to register a win over Jamshedpur FC having failed to do so in the past three meetings. The psychological advantage will definitely be with the home side who need a win at all costs to keep the hope for the play-off spots alive.