With a direct qualification to the semifinals hanging in the balance, FC Goa host Chennaiyin FC in a high-stakes knockout battle of the Indian Super League here on Saturday.
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On recent form, FC Goa enters the fixture on the back of an impressive run (45 points from their 22 matches), having secured victories in four out of their last five matches.
Their commanding performance against Chennaiyin FC in their recent face-off, where they emerged triumphant with a 4-1 scoreline, underscores their current form and confidence.
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Contrastingly, Chennaiyin FC, despite experiencing a setback in their previous fixture against FC Goa, have demonstrated resilience throughout the season.
With wins in three of their last five matches, they are poised to bounce back and pose a formidable challenge to their opponents.
FC Goa fare well against Chennaiyin FC, having won five of their last six matches against them, and keeping a clean sheet in four of those victories.
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The Gaurs have found the back of the net in each of their previous 14 matches against the Marina Machans, and only against Kerala Blasters FC do have a longer active scoring streak, i.e. of 19 games.
FC Goa now have won four matches in a row, and their last longer run like this was a stretch of five matches from January-February 2020.
Their 52 strikes against Chennaiyin FC is the most goals that a team has netted against any opposition in the ISL. They put up an absolute show in the last match, and one can expect similar fireworks, or at least intent to pull off the same in the forthcoming fixture as well.
Prior to their defeat in the last game against the Gaurs, Chennaiyin FC had scored at least two goals or more in each of their three matches in the ISL.
Chennaiyin FC have often brought their A-game to the table in the knockouts, having won six playoffs matches in the tournament, which is the joint-highest amongst all teams along with Bengaluru FC (6).