Hyderabad, Nov 24: Gaining three points to climb up in the points table will be the priority when former winners Hyderabad FC play host to Odisha FC in a Season 2024-25 match of the Indian Super League (ISL) at the G.M.C. Balayogi Athletic Stadium here on Monday. Hyderabad FC are currently placed 11th among 13 teams while Odisha are slightly better at ninth. Therefore, both sides want to climb up the ladder to strengthen their positions in their respective first matches after the international break.

After a tough campaign last year, Hyderabad FC have shown increasingly encouraging signs by securing two victories and a draw in their seven matches thus far. Their seven points place them at the 11th spot and with the sixth-placed Punjab FC merely five points ahead (12) of them, the home team can begin thinking about bridging the gap with the higher-ranked opponents.

Odisha FC have nine points from eight games. Head coach Sergio Lobera has been amongst the most competitive tacticians in the competition regardless of the team he is coaching and the Spaniard would hence want better results with consistent performances from the Juggernauts. This away fixture gives them the opportunity to begin maximizing points in the encounters coming their way.

Hyderabad FC believe in making early inroads into the opposition’s defence, ensuring that they set the tone for the flow of the proceedings. This has resulted in them netting 43% of their goals in the opening 15 minutes of their matches in ISL 2024-25, with three out of their seven strikes so far coming in this phase of the game. Interestingly though, Hyderabad FC play their best away from home! That explains their concerning home form since they have not registered a victory in the previous 15 matches in their backyard. In fact, their last win in the stadium came back in February 2023 against Mohun Bagan Super Giant by a 1-0 margin.

Hyderabad FC head coach Thangboi Singto lauded the experience present in the Odisha FC ranks but insisted that his side is confident going into the match. “Odisha FC have a coach who has been a winner in Indian football. They have one of the most experienced batches of foreign players. We need to take on this game with great confidence and practice, which we have done,” Singto said.

Odisha FC have recorded eight sequences of 10+ open play passes per game in ISL 2024-25. This is the highest such average by any team and it suggests that Hyderabad FC will have to strategise through which they can secure points despite not having possession for a large chunk of the game since Odisha FC prefer keeping the ball.

Despite having seasoned defenders like Mourtada Fall and Carlos Delgado in their ranks, Odisha FC have been unable to keep a clean sheet in any of their eight matches in ISL 2024-25 so far. If Hyderabad FC score on Monday, it will mark only the second time that the Juggernauts would concede a goal in each of their first nine games in an ISL season since 2020-21. This is surely a record that Lobera would want to set straight soon.

Odisha FC head coach Lobera demanded greater efficiency from his frontline but also assured that his team is on the right track and is uplifting their performances in certain key areas. “We need to be clinical in the final third. However, I’m happy with the recent performance of the team since we showed improvement in some areas that we needed to improve upon,” Lobera said.

The two teams have faced each other 10 times in the ISL. Hyderabad FC and Odisha FC have won four and five games respectively, and one match has resulted in a draw.

--IANS

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