Delhi take on Goa in first semifinals of ISL 2

Beaten twice by FC Goa in the league phase, Delhi Dynamos would start as underdogs in their first leg semifinal match of the Indian Super League football tournament against the same opponents here on Friday.

Goa finished on top of the ISL league table and won both their league matches against Delhi Dynamos - 2-0 at home and 3-2 away - and current form would give them an advantage on Friday at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

Goa’s last win came here last week when they bounced back from two goals down in the first session to script a remarkable 3-2 victory that took them to the top of the table and left Delhi Dynamos in fourth place. By virtue of that win, Goa took the advantage of playing the second leg of the first semifinal at home.

The capital city’s football fans were treated with five goals last time the two sides met, though they must have been disappointed that the home team lost. They would hope for same attacking football on Friday also. On Friday, it could be a fascinating contest between attack-minded Goa and defensively solid Delhi, which prefers to play possession football. Among the four semi-finalists, Delhi have scored the least number of goals (18), while Goa, under Zico, have found the opposition net 29 times, the highest among the eight teams. Coach Roberto Carlos has transformed Delhi into a well-oiled unit that is difficult to break down with Anas Edathodika and John Arne Riise marshalling their backline. Carlos’ tactical discipline and organisation has made sure that Delhi do not concede many goals either (20). Despite losing both league games against Goa, Carlos said his team has enough potential to create an upset and make it to the final on December 20. . “The semi-final is of 180 minutes, so on Friday, nothing will be decided. We have to keep performing like we did in the first half of the last game (against FC Goa).