Saturday night brings us further ISL action as Delhi Dynamos play host to ATK in a clash of the bottom of the league. Not many people will be hyped for this game as it involves two of the bottom three sides, but I’m looking forward to the game. Both teams will be wanting the win as they look to stay off the bottom, just like the playoff picture, this one won’t be finished until the last game. Let’s dive straight into the stats.
The Stats…
The hosts, Delhi, head into the game in 9th position, a single point above bottom side NorthEast and a single point off their opponents. This is a must-win game for Delhi because, after they have played this game, they still have a game in hand over NorthEast. They have an improving goalscoring record in the league, managing sixteen goals this season. They have the worst defensive record in the league this season, conceding a staggering thirty-one goals. They head into the game in average form, winning one, drawing two and losing two of their previous five. They haven’t lost in three and their performances recently have been fantastic.
The visitors, ATK, head into the game in 8th position, two points above bottom side NorthEast and a single point above their opponents and hosts. A draw would leave NorthEast needing to catch them with a win and they would also need to reduce the goal difference gap. A win would mean ATK cannot finish bottom in any circumstances. They have the worst goal scoring record in the league this season after only managing eleven goals this season. Their defensive record is fairly average, after conceding twenty-one goals. They head into the game in awful form, losing four and drawing one of their previous five games. They have been picking up a goal or two in their recent performances so they could hurt Delhi.
Previous Encounter…
The last time these two sides met was back in December 2017, with the game ending in a 1-0 win to ATK. They left it fairly late to score, with the goal coming on seventy-eight minutes, with the one and only Robbie Keane netting the goal.
The game itself was fairly lackluster, which was to be expected as they were two poor sides back then and are still considered to be now. ATK will be hoping for a similar result this time around, while Delhi will be hoping for the complete opposite.
The Game Itself…
This game could go one of two ways. One way is both teams go out with all guns blazing and the game turns into an entertaining goal-fest. The other way is that Delhi drop the current form they are in and both teams play awful football, with the game ending in a dreadful 0-0 draw.
I believe it will be the first of the two choices, mainly because both teams won’t want to finish bottom, ATK have been scoring goals lately and Delhi are awful at the back, and Delhi have been in great form recently.
Key Player…
ATK and Ashley Westwood enjoy changing their lineup, formation, and tactics for every game it seems, so it’s difficult to choose a player on their current form. One player that can always be considered a threat is Ryan Taylor. Arguably ATK’s best player, he will always be a great player as he can both defend and attack. Another player Delhi will have to keep an eye on is Martin Paterson, he always seems to sneak in with a goal and always has been throughout his career.
On Delhi’s side, there’s a couple of players that can cause a threat. One player is Chhangte, he seems to be the key influence for Delhi and he plays brilliantly down the wing, especially in recent weeks. However, my Key Player award is going to the one and only Kalu Uche. He has become a man possessed in the last six to seven games as he can’t stop scoring. He has six goals in his last five games and I’m telling you now, yes Jake, that’s you, he will score again in this game, get your house on it!
Finally…
With all this being said, I will simply leave you with this. I expect the game to be an open, close fought affair with Delhi taking the three points with a 2-1 scoreline. I wouldn’t be surprised if Uche ended up getting both the goals. Either way, this game will be a very interesting one to watch.
