After playing nine matches in the Hero Indian Super League (Hero ISL) 2019-20, Odisha FC finally head home to play at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Friday against local rivals, Jamshedpur FC. The newcomers have played three home fixtures till date but each one of them were at Pune’s Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex Stadium.

Currently placed seventh on the Hero ISL standings, Odisha are yet to prove their point, having lost four, won two and drawn three. While they have been decent upfront, the defence has conceded the third-highest number of goals at 14. With the main pitch ready to host competitive matches and exciting fan support to look forward to, the Odisha players cannot wait to get the ball rolling at the Kalinga Stadium.

Odisha captain, Marcos Tebar was one of the first ones to express his excitement on playing in Bhubaneswar and appealed to the fans to come in numbers to support his boys. He delightfully said, “We are really excited to finally play at home and in front of our supporters. It will be great to have fans on our side during our matches here.”

“We need you (the fans) to cheer us up. We are looking forward to playing at home and you need to be our 12^th man, pushing us up from the stands. Together we will enjoy the beautiful game.”

Along with Tebar, club owner Rohan Sharma shared his happiness as well and urged the fans to throng the stadium. “All the sports fans of Odisha, I would love to have your voices, your spirit and your passion at the Kalinga Stadium this week against a very tough team in Jamshedpur FC,” he said.

He also made clear the overall aim of the club going forward and how the fans can help in that process, “We have aspirations to be in the top four and your support will help us to push the team forward. We need your help and guidance to make our first game ever at the Kalinga Stadium a historic one.”