Goa: FC Goa would be in search of shortening the gap between them and the top two on Sunday night as they take on ATK Mohun Bagan. The Gaurs would not only look for an avenge their slender 0-1 loss at the hands of the Mariners earlier this season, but also overtake Antonio Habas’ men on the points tally.
The Gaurs have won three of their last four and unbeaten during this period. Meanwhile, ATK Mohun Bagan, on the other hand, come into the game at the back of their second loss of the season – at the hands of Mumbai City FC.
This makes for an enthralling game between the two sides with points, bragging rights and pride at stake. So what are the things you should know before the two giants in Fatorda?
Here are 10 things to know about the game:
0 – The Gaurs have always come into their own inside the box. Last season saw the Gaurs score 49 of their 51 goals from inside the box. They are yet to score from outside the box this season.
3 – When it comes to ‘Accurate Final Third Passes’, three of the top four names belong to FC Goa. Edu Bedia leads the line with 158 – 29 clear of the next man. Jorge Ortiz and Alberto Noguera also get in with 125 and 122 to their names respectively.
10 – ATK Mohun Bagan have yet again relied on their defensive prowess to climb towards the top of the table. The Mariners have scored only 10 goals – less than any other team in the competition. However, only 4 goals conceded so far has meant that the Green and Maroon are within sniffing distance of the top spot.
16 – Juan Ferrando’s men are slowly but surely coming into their own. The new-look team had looked off and on during the initial period of the season. However, the last four games have seen the Gaurs score eight and conceded only three. In total, the Gaurs have scored 16 goals from 11 games (at an average of 1.45 per game). Only Mumbai (1.7) and Hyderabad (1.5) have a better average at the time of writing.
20 – No one has more interceptions for the Gaurs than young left-back Saviour Gama. He is the only Gaur to be in the top 20 in the category with 20 interceptions to his name. The man with the highest interceptions for ATK Mohun Bagan is Pritam Kotal with 26.
23 – Gama also leads the Gaurs in terms of tackles made. His 23 tackles are good enough for second-most in the league for a defender. He is closely followed by Ivan Gonzalez – who has 22 tackles to his name.
28 – Jorge Ortiz continues to have a fine first season with FC Goa. The Spaniard’s brace in the last game against Jamshedpur FC underlined his class. The tricky winger-cum-forward currently leads the league in successful dribbles completed – 28. He is also on the top of the list for shots attempted on goals and shots on target.
60.87 – For players who have accurately made 60 long balls or more so far this season, only Juanan has better accuracy than Edu Bedia. The Spaniard, who has been the fulcrum of the FC Goa side has produced a total of 70 accurate long balls at an accuracy of 60.87%.
156.5 – With his two assists in Goa’s win over Jamshedpur in the last game, Alberto Noguera has surged to second place on the assists table. The Spaniard now has an assist every 156.5 minutes. Only former Gaur Hugo Boumous has a better assist rate – assisting once every 136.8 minutes.
669 – Naveen Kumar starred for the Gaurs in their last game. The keeper put in a colossal performance to help Goa to all three points against Jamshedpur in the last game. This was the keeper’s first game for the side in 669 days for FC Goa. His last came in the heartbreaking loss to Bengaluru FC in the final of the ISL in 2019
