ISL 2020-21, Bengaluru FC vs NorthEast United FC: Head-to-head stats and numbers you need to know
Two unbeaten teams, Bengaluru FC and NorthEast United FC square off against each other in an exciting Indian Super League (ISL) match at the Fatorda Stadium on Tuesday.
Former champions Bengaluru FC entered the season as one of the strongest teams after crashing out in the semi-finals last season. They retained most of their core players for this ISL season. Some additions were made to the foreign contingent as Norwegian Kristian Opseth and I-League winner Fran Gonzalez joined them from Adelaide United and Mohun Bagan respectively.
The team looks far from perfect, though. After bottling a lead of 2 goals in the first match, Bengaluru scored just once in the next two games, thanks to a penalty kick. It will be interesting to see how they manage to get past the NorthEast United defence which has been solid till now.
NorthEast United revamped their squad while retaining just a few of their key players. With Gerard Nus at the helm, the team is having a great run with 8 points from 4 matches.
They are yet to lose a match this season. Players like Apuia, Benjamin Lambot, Dylan Fox, and Ninthoinganba Meetei have been impressive for the Highlanders. The team has been fine-tuning for some matches now, and with some fixes in the attack, NorthEast United can become lethal. In the last match against SC East Bengal, NorthEast United won by a 2-0 margin.
Bengaluru FC vs NorthEast United FC - All you need to know
The two sides have met on 8 occasions, and Bengaluru have the upper hand with 5 wins. NorthEast United have won just once, while the points were shared on two occasions.
In the 2018-19 season, NorthEast United FC qualified for the playoffs for the first time in their history. They played Bengaluru FC in the two-legged semifinal. Even though the Highlanders won the first match, the Men in Blue had the last laugh as they won the second leg and the semifinal on aggregate.
Results of last five matches between Bengaluru FC and NorthEast United FC
NorthEast United FC 0-2 Bengaluru FC - 18th December 2019
Bengaluru FC 0-0 NorthEast United FC - 21st October 2019
Bengaluru FC 3-0 NorthEast United FC - 11th March 2019
NorthEast United FC 2-1 Bengaluru FC - 7th March 2019
Bengaluru FC 2-1 NorthEast United FC - 30th January 2019
Top 3 goalscorers from last season
Sunil Chhetri (11) was the top goalscorer for Bengaluru FC last season. Deshorn Brown (7) and Semboi Haokip (6) also chipped in with useful contributions.
For NorthEast United, Asamoah Gyan was the top scorer with 4 goals. Redeem Tlang and Martin Chaves followed suit with 3 each.
Clean sheets from last season
With Gurpreet Singh Sandhu at the back, Bengaluru FC had 11 clean sheets last season.
NorthEast United, though, had just 3 clean sheets with Subhasish Roy as their custodian.