Confirmed: ISL 2018-19 semifinals from 7-12; ISL final on March 17 in Mumbai
The Indian Super League (ISL) semifinals will be held from March 7-12 and the final on March 17 in Mumbai, Sportskeeda can confirm.
The Times of India reported on Wednesday that the ISL playoffs will begin from March 8, but the first leg of the first semifinal has been moved to March 7.
Star, the broadcasters of the ISL, confirmed it with an advertisement campaign which said the first semifinal would be on March 7.
The four teams who have made the semifinals are Bengaluru FC (table-toppers), FC Goa, Mumbai City FC and NorthEast United.
The first semifinal will be between the first-placed team from the league phase against the fourth-placed club. The second semifinal will involve the club finishing second, FC Goa, against the third (either Mumbai City FC or NorthEast United).
In this case, Bengaluru FC will play their first semifinal away. The second leg will be held at home on March 11 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
The third-placed side will host the first leg on March 9 and play the second leg away at the Fatorda Stadium on March 12. Mumbai City's home venue is the Mumbai Football Arena (Andheri Sports Complex), while NorthEast play their home games at the Indira Gandhi Athletic Stadium in Guwahati.
The final will be held in Mumbai on March 17, giving the teams at least five days to recover and prepare for the summit clash.
The league is expected to confirm the semifinal dates within the next 2 days. The league stage will conclude on March 3 with ATK playing their last game against Delhi Dynamos.
Bengaluru have completed their league campaign with 34 points in 18 games but suffered a huge 5-1 defeat to Jamshedpur FC on Wednesday.
Goa will complete their formalities against Chennaiyin FC by Thursday. NorthEast travel to Kochi for their final league fixture against Kerala Blasters the next day, while Mumbai City have the Maharashtra Derby against Pune City at the Balewadi Stadium on March 2.
Bengaluru FC and FC Goa go as the firm favourites to make the ISL final. Goa have completely dominated the league stage with their attacking play but lost out on the top spot to Bengaluru after losing 3-0 at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium.
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