ISL 2015: Three reasons why Kolkata will beat Pune tonight
Atletico de Kolkata host FC Pune City at the Salt Lake Stadium tonight and the defending champions have the golden opportunity of confirming their place in the knockout stage with a win. Pune head into this match on the back of a five-match win-less streak, and that is likely to be extended when they face a Kolkata side who have won four of their last six games.
Prediction: Atletico de Kolkata 2-0 FC Pune City
1. Iain Hume and Sameehg Doutie leading Kolkata's resurgence
Just when doubts were creeping in about Kolkata's ability to defend the title this season, the men in red and white showed exactly why they won the crown last season. Canadian striker Iain Hume has stepped up and asserted his class, and he has been ably assisted by South African speedster Sameehg Doutie.
The duo have wrecked havoc recently as Kolkata have gone on to score 14 goals in their last five games. Hume has scored six goals and provided three assists, while Doutie has scored three goals and provided five assists. The Pune defence, which conceded three goals against Delhi in their last game, will struggle to contain this Canadian-South African pair tonight.
2. Pune's struggling attack
At the start of the tournament it seemed like Pune had one of the best attacks in the league with the likes of Tuncay Sanli, Kalu Uche, Adrian Mutu and Yendrick Ruiz in their squad. They were scoring goals for fun, initially. But their attacking prowess has withered away in the second half of the season.
The Stallions have scored only four goals in their last five games and they will struggle to score tonight against an Atletico side, who have conceded the least number of goals (13), alongside Delhi, in the league so far.
3. Pune's poor away record
Pune have won only one of their last 12 away games - interestingly a 3-1 win in Kolkata last year. David Platt's men have failed to improve on their poor record on the road this season as they have dropped points against Chennaiyin, Goa, Kerala Blasters, Mumbai and Delhi.
Kolkata, on the other hand, have an admirable record at the Salt Lake Stadium. They have lost just three of the 13 matches they have played at home since the inaugural season and are likely to add one more to the record tonight.
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