Bengaluru, October 17: In the battle of unbeaten teams Punjab FC will face Bengaluru FC in a top of the table clash in the Indian Super League 2024-25 season here at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium. Punjab FC are unbeaten this season, winning all three of their matches while Bengaluru FC are also unbeaten in the season winning three and drawing one. Victories for either side will see them take the top position in the table. The match is scheduled to kick off at 7:30 PM. Punjab will be taking the field after a long gap of three weeks while Bengaluru FC played out a goalless draw against Mumbai City at Mumbai.
Speaking ahead of the game, PFC Head Coach Panagiotis Dilmperis said, “We have had three good games at the start of the season and the results we achieved are due to the hard work of the coaches and players. We have a lot of away matches this season. In this long gap, our target was to remain focused and continue our process in training. Tomorrow is going to be an important game for both teams as the winners will be at the top of the table. We will continue playing our style of football and the players have adapted to that very quickly and are focused on sticking to that plan. I am confident that we will have a good game tomorrow and we will return with all three points.”
Punjab FC have been solid at the start of the season, showcasing a balanced performance spearheaded by a solid back four led by Ivan Novoselec, Suresh Meitei, Khaimingthang Lhungdim and Tekcham Abhishek Singh. The midfield trio of Nikhil Prabhu, Vinit Rai and Filip Mrzljak have been putting in the work in both boxes while Nihal Sudeesh has been electric down the wings, scoring against Odisha and also scalping the Player of the Match awards in the opening two matches. Ezequiel Vidal scored with a brilliant free kick against Hyderabad and has started to adapt to the conditions along with Mushaga Bakenga.
PFC goalkeeper Ravi Kumar during the pre–match press conference said, “I think we all are very excited for tomorrow’s game. We will have to maintain the good start we had to the season. There’s a change in our mindset from last season and we believe in ourselves a lot more. The team will give its best tomorrow against a very good Bengaluru side and we hope to get a positive result from the game.”
Last season, both teams played an exciting 3-3 draw at Bengaluru while Punjab FC comprehensively beat Bengaluru 3-1 in the reverse fixture at New Delhi. Bengaluru are currently at the top of the table with ten points from four matches while Punjab FC are second with nine points from three matches.
Bengaluru FC are yet to drop a point at home this season with Sunil Chhetri leading from the front and the backline marshalled by a rock-solid Rahul Bheke and Nikhil Pooajry. In addition to their defensive discipline, Bengaluru’s attacking prowess has flourished under the watchful eye of head coach Gerard Zaragoza. Youngster Vinith Venkatesh has impressed everyone with his attacking ability.
