ISL 2020-21: Mumbai City FC vs Chennaiyin FC - Preview, Predicted Lineups and Channel

Preview

Table toppers Mumbai City host Chennaiyin FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Wednesday. Sergio Lobera’s men will be high on confidence after three convincing victories on the trot. Csaba Laszlo’s side however, are still smarting from the narrow 1-0 defeat against Bengaluru FC. They will be looking for only their second win of the season after accumulating just 4 points from three games.

Both the sides have won 2 each in their last 5 meetings. The Islanders are yet to concede a goal this season. What makes it even more difficult for Chennaiyin is the fact that they rarely lose a match in which they score the first goal. History favours the Marina Machans though, who have won 6 out of the 12 previous meetings between these two teams. Mumbai City have won 4 while the other two were draws.

https://twitter.com/MumbaiCityFC/status/1336271165690576896

Squad Overview

Sergio Lobera should have all his flair players available after rotating his side well in the past couple of matches. Both Adam Le Fondre and Bart Ogbeche, who scored a penalty against Odisha FC, are amongst goals. It will therefore be interesting to see who the head coach picks. Hernan Santana, Mourtada Fall, Mohamad Rakip, Hugo Boumous, Rowllin Borges and Ahmed Jahouh are all automatic starters based on their form.

Also, Bipin Singh might start again following his impressive performances in the last two games. Farukh Chaudhary, Raynier Fernandes, Cy Goddard, Sarthak Golui and Vignesh Dakshinamurthy are the others who should be in or around the starting eleven. Mandar Rao missed the last match due to his father’s passing and it remains to be seen if he is in the headspace to rejoin the side.

https://twitter.com/ChennaiyinFC/status/1336294581508304896

Chennaiyin come into the game as the underdogs, something that they aren’t used to. They will be missing Anirudh Thapa after he picked up an injury although Laszlo did confirm in the pre-match press conference isn’t as serious as it had initially appeared. Eli Sabia and Enes Sipovic should patrol the defence along with Reagan and Jerry.

Rafael Crivellaro might drop slightly deeper to accommodate an extra attacker. Contrastingly, Laszlo may also start Germanpreet Singh or Edwin Vanspaul in midfield to make up for Thapa’s absence. Rahim Ali, Fatkhullo Fatkhuloev, Memo and Lalchhuanmawia Fanai may also come off the bench and have an impact later on.

Predicted Lineups and Result

Mumbai City FC:

Amrinder Singh; Mohamad Rakip, Mourtada Fall, Hernan Santana, Vignesh Dakshinamurthy; Ahmed Jahouh, Rowllin Borges; Bipin Singh, Hugo Boumous, Raynier Fernandes; Adam Le Fondre

Chennaiyin FC:

Vishal Kaith; Reagan Singh, Eli Sabia, Enes Sipovic, Jerry Lalrinzuala; Deepak Tangri, Rafael Crivellaro; Isma, Lallianzuala Chhangte, , Jakub Sylvestr

Result:

Mumbai City 3-1 Chennaiyin FC

TV Channel and Livestream

The match will be telecast across Star Network’s sports and regional channels. It can also be streamed live on Disney+ Hotstar and Jio TV. Kick-off is at 7:30 pm IST.