Nearing the half-way stage of the ISL league stage, Goa are in desperate need for a win in order to keep their hopes of reaching the playoffs alive.
Zico and his men know that they have to pick up a minimum of 16 points from their remaining eight group stage engagements to stand a chance of making the semis, with 5 home games left for the Gaurs to make a late push.
Jofre limped off in the last match and he will be replaced by Rafael Coelho who is expected to lead the line, with Julio Cesar playing off him as a second striker. Robin Singh, who was ineffective in the last match may be replaced by Romeo Fernandes.
Goa may line up in a 3-5-2 with Romeo and Keenan Almeida expected to man the wings. Gregory Arnolin, who was solid otherwise, struggled against Goa in Kerala's 2-1 defeat but will retain his place at the heart of the defence alongside Rafael Dumas and Raju Gaikwad.
Delhi have drawn four of their six games and their only win came in their opening match against the champions Chennaiyin, scoring three at the Marina Arena. Since then, they have only scored five goals in as many matches and lie sixth in the table, with seven points but could jump to third if they beat the Gaurs.
For Gianluca Zambrotta, it has been a frustrating ISL with his strikers misfiring, especially in the last match when Pune keeper Edel Bete made eight saves to restrict the Delhi attack to one goal.
The Italian manager chose to focus on his side's luck in front of goal before the match, "I'm not frustrated but yes, we had a lot of opportunities to score. It important for us to be positive and have a good attitude. We will continue this way and obtain a good result soon."
The capital outfit is expected to retain make some changes to the line-up that took to the field against Pune, with Marcos Tebar expected to return to the line-up in the place of David Addy.
Rupert Nongrum may be dropped for Chinglensana Singh, who came on a substitute in Delhi's last match, with Souvik Chakraborty expected to continue on the opposite flank. Anas Edathodika and Ruben have been a reliable partnership, which will be key to keeping the home team at bay.
Match Facts
Venue: Fatorda Stadium, Goa
Capacity: 19,000
Time: 7 pm IST
Last meeting: FC Goa 3-0 Delhi Dynamos FC, 15th December, 2015 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi
Head-to-head: Matches: 6, Goa wins: 5, Delhi wins: 1
Key Battles
Julio Cesar vs Anas Edathodika
The Brazilian has managed to work himself into coach Zico's plans after a good couple of games, in which he bagged a goal and an assist. Best when played in the number 10 position and looks to have a good footballing brain, having run the show for Goa last time around.
Edathodika, in only his second match returning from injury, looked out of pace in the last match but will to deal with Cesar's physicality. May end up second-best to the Brazilian, who looks in good nick.
Richard Gadze vs Gregory Arnolin
The Ghanian will spearhead Delhi's attack and has scored one goal and set up two more in his five matches so far. Zambrotta will expect more of him, having been Delhi's leading scorer last term.
Arnolin, the Frenchman, has played generally solid for the Gaurs but was poor in their last match. Was partly culpable for both goals and only the post saved him from putting it through his own net. Will have to be careful not to get battered by Gadze.
Expected line-ups
FC Goa: Subhasish Roy Chowdhury; Gregory Arnolin, Rafael Dumas, Raju Gaikwad; Keenan Almeida, Pratesh Shirodkar, Richarlyson, Romeo Fernandes, Trindade Goncalves; Julio Cesar, Rafael Coelho
Delhi Dynamos FC: Soram Poirei; Ruben Gonzalez Rocha, Anas Edathodika, Chinglesana Konsham Singh, Souvik Chakraborty; Florent Malouda, Marcos Tebar, Milan Singh, Marcelinho, Kean Lewis; Richard Gadze
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