Goa: FC Goa and Bengaluru FC, two of the most popular teams in the Indian Super League (ISL) will face each other on Sunday(November 22) to get their season underway. A fixture, known to be considered as a top-of-the-table clash since being played for the first time in 2017-18 season when Bengaluru FC debuted in the ISL and the following season, the Blues actually defeated the Gaurs 1-0 in the Final claiming the title. this fixture is a kind of his own with some interesting numbers and facts to look at the before the Gaurs host the Blues.
FC Goa are yet to register a clean against Bengaluru FC in with the holder of the ISL League Winners’ Shield claiming just a single win in all of the seven games played between them.
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Bengaluru FC have a unique record of scoring first in each of the last 6 games between the two sides while Gaurs scored first in their only win against the Blues which came with a strike from Ferran Corominus. Interestingly, Ferran is the only player to have scored a hat-trick in this fixture netting in Goa’s only triumph over Bengaluru which ended in 4-3 win in the 2017/18 season while Brandon Fernandes is the only Indian goal scorer of which he netted in as the equaliser for the FC Goa in their 1-2 home defeat in the 2018/19 season. On the other hand, Miku is the top scorer for Bengaluru FC with three to his name scoring a brace in Goa’s 4-3 win in 2017 before netting the third in a 3-0 win at the Kanteerava Stadium in the 2018/19 season.
Seriton Fernandes has started in all of games for the Gaurs against Bengaluru FC while interesting midfielder Lenny Rodriguez is the only player to have featured for both the sides in this fixture playing for the Blues back in the 2017/18 season before moving to the Gaurs squad the following season appearing 41 consecutively for them.
Both the side are the only two teams to reach the Playoffs of the ISL each and every time in the last three season with Bengaluru FC holding the record for registering the highest number of points claimed in the league phase of the ISL with 40 in their 2017/18 campaign while FC Goa actually recorded their highest ever last season with 39, which also happens to be the second-highest in the history of league phase of ISL.
FC Goa’s Mohammad Nawaz will be become the first goalkeeper in club’s history to record double-digits clean sheets in this fixture if he starts for the Gaurs against Bengaluru with him registering nine clean sheets in total.
However, this clash between FC Goa and Bengaluru FC have always seen a fair amount of fury and rush of blood among the players resulting in five red cards in total in seven games with Blues goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu opened the account with a red in the first-ever clash between them which was Nishu Kumar, Mohamed Ali, Dimas Delgado and Ahmed Jahouh.
