Diego Forlan
Forlan will be a crucial part of Mumbai City's plans in ISL 2016 Reuters

Match: FC Pune City v Mumbai City

Date: 3 October, Monday

Time: 9:30pm SGT/7pm IST/2:30pm BST

Venue: Balewadi Sports Club, Pune

Competition: Indian Super League 2016

TV Coverage: There is no TV coverage of the 2016 ISL clash between FC Pune City and Mumbai City in Singapore.

Live Streaming: Hotstar

Overview

FC Pune City host Mumbai City in their Indian Super League 2016 opener at the Balewadi Sports Club on Monday.

The hosts will be boosted by newly-appointed manager Antonio Habas, who successfully lead Atletico de Kolkata to title in 2014 and semi-final in 2015. The Spaniard, known for his work ethics, is expected to help Pune City go the distance.

Pune though suffered a big loss when former Barcelona and Chelsea forward Eidur Gudjohnsen, who signed as their marquee player, was ruled out with an injury. Former Juventus midfielder Mohamed Sissoko has been named as his replacement.

They will also miss Eugeneson Lyngdoh for the initial phase of the season as the Indian midfielder is on 2016 AFC Cup duty with I-League franchise Bengaluru FC. However, the presence of midfielder Arata Izumi, who impressed during his stint with Atletico in the 2015 season, would boost their midfield.

Goalkeeper Apoula Edel, who played a crucial part in Chennaiyin FC's 2015 title-winning campaign, will ply his trade for Pune this season. Argentine footballer Gustavo Oberman and Mexican Anibal Zurdo are likely to lead the frontline for them on Monday. Left-back Narayan Das will also be a vital cog in Habas' plans.

On the other hand, Mumbai City's marquee signing Diego Forlan will grab the spotlight in their season opener. The Uruguay legend will be a dominant presence in the team's front line along with Sony Norde and Cafu.

The visitors have also had a change in management as they have replaced 2015 season's marquee player-coach Nicolas Anelka with Alexander Guimaraes.

However, Mumbai will miss key players in Sunil Chhetri, Lalcchuanmmawia Fanai and Udanta Singh and custodian Arminder Singh, who are with Bengaluru FC.

Anwar Ali and Romanian Lucian Goian are likely to play at the centre of Mumbai's defence on Monday with Sena Ralte and Ashutosh Mehta employed as full backs. Midfielder Jaichand Singh is another promising Indian footballer who Guimaraes can rely on in this season.

Monday's clash will prove to be a tightly-contested tie as the two teams from Maharashtra, who have never made it to the final stages of the tournament, will be hoping for a good start to the new season.

TV Schedule

Australia: Fox Sports 1 Australia

Bhutan: Star Sports 3 Asia

Bangladesh: Star Sports 3 Asia

Cameroon: Fox Sports 1 Africa

South Africa: Fox Sports 1 Africa

Nepal: Star Sports 3 Asia

India: Star Sports 3

UAE: Abu Dhabi Sports 6

Team News

FC Pune City

Possible XI: Apoula Edel; Narayan Das, Eduardo Ferreira, Augustine Fernandes, Rahul Bheke; Jonatan Lucca, Bruno Arias, Arata Izumi, Lenny Rodrigues; Anibal Zurdo, Gustavo Oberman

Mumbai City

Possible XI: Roberto Volpato; Sena Ralte, Anwar Ali, Lucian Goian, Ashutosh Mehta; Pronay Halder, Kristian Vadocz, Matias Defederico, Jackichand Singh; Diego Forlan, Sony Norde