Sunday marks the commencement of the first quarter-final of the inaugural Hero Super Cup, where two Hero I-League clubs - Aizawl FC and East Bengal lock horns at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Both the times these two clubs have met in the 2017-18 season, the match has ended drawn and hence, when the knockout fixture beckons, they need to set strategies right to dominate their opponent. Here we take a look at their chances. 

Aizawl FC 

Aizawl FC will be high on confidence after getting the better of Hero Indian Super League (ISL) 2017-18 champions Chennaiyin FC in the first pre-quarter final of the tournament. Not only did Andrei Ionescu’s brace give them the lead in two different instances, they also held on to their composure in the nerve-wracking penalty shootout to win it 5-3 and see away the solid Marina Machans. Santosh Kashyap’s boys will be brimming with excitement and will look to give the Kolkata giants a tough time. 

Playing a much stronger team, Aizawl for once did not look uncomfortable, thronging Chennaiyin’s box from the very first minute. Thus, Andrei Ionescu and Zikahi Leonce Dodoz will be on East Bengal’s radar all through. Captain Alfred Jaryan is sure to hold the midfield firm throughout the match supported ably by young talents, while custodian Arup Debnath, whose heroics in the penalties earned them the victory, will have the likes of Masih Saighani and Lalrozama Fanai in front to restrict East Bengal’s able attack in their strides. 

East Bengal 

The heavyweights rode on their attacking prowess to get over Mumbai City FC’s initial lead and came back with two strikes of their own to win 2-1. Two of East Bengal’s star players, Katsumi Yusa and Mahmoud Al Amna got their name on the scoresheet, while their defence didn’t allow Mumbai a sniff back into the game. Facing an opponent whom they are yet to defeat this season, East Bengal is sure to chisel their plans and ensure they manage to put enough pressure on the young squad to emerge victoriously. 

Having continued their league attacking form into the competition, the likes of Yusa and Dudu Omegbemi is sure to be on the hit-list of Aizawl. The midfield has the likes of Cavin Lobo who lead the side impressively in the high-octane encounter, assisted by the charismatic Mahmoud Al Amna. They will have a task in their hand to restrict Aizawl from counter-attacking. Eduardo Ferreira and Gurwinder Singh will lead the defence line with Ubaid CK under the sticks, ensuring Aizawl doesn’t get any loopholes to crack the wall. 

Watch the match live on the Star Sports Network from 4 pm onwards.