Delhi Dynamos FC and FC Pune City eye joining table-toppers FC Goa on 18 points when they take the field in their Hero Indian Super League Season 2 match at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on Thursday. Both teams are tied on 15 points and a win will place them alongside the Gaurs. Both Delhi and Pune haven’t seen a win for a while. While Delhi have drawn their last three matches at home, Pune, after losing to Kerala Blasters FC, ended up sharing the points against FC Goa and Mumbai City FC in their last two matches. The match is also important in the sense that a win for either team will help them put one foot in the semi-finals.Form Guide (Last 5 Matches)Delhi Dynamos FC: L-W-D-D-DFC Pune City: W-D-L-D-DHead-to-Head: Last year after drawing the home game 0-0, Delhi won away 1-0 thanks to a Gustavo dos Santos strike. The Lions won earlier this season too, and this time Robin Singh and Richard Gadze scored in the 2-1 win.John Arne Riise v Kalu UcheNorwegian defender Riise has been one of the main reasons behind Delhi being the meanest defence this season, having conceded just eight goals in nine matches. Kalu Uche, on the other hand, has been Pune’s highest-scorer and that’s what makes the Riise-Uche match-up mouth-watering. The outcome of the match heavily depends on who comes out on top on Thursday.Florent Malouda v Didier ZokoraMalouda is having a brilliant season. That Delhi have dominated possession in their most matches is down to Malouda’s contribution in the midfield. The former France international has provided five assists so far and has saved Delhi’s blushes quite a few times this season. However, he hasn’t scored yet and Thursday might be the day to end the drought. Malouda will be in direct confrontation with Zokora who was adjudged Hero of the Match in the 0-0 draw against Mumbai City FC last week. The midfielder has been at the heart of many of Pune’s attacks and Malouda-Zokora is another match-up that will influence the outcome of the game.Richard Gadze vs Nicky ShoreyGadze has proved to be ultimate super-sub for Delhi this season. Three out of his four goals came in the second half when he came on as a substitute and helped his team either to a win or a draw in the dying moments. Nicky Shorey, on the other hand, has not only been at the heart of Pune’s defence but also behind many moves that ended in goals for the Stallions. Gadze’s speed is a big asset for him and it will be interesting to see how Shorey deals with that.Quotes:I will take a draw. I think both teams will look for a win. They will set out for a win. Games can go either way, for any reason. We are here to win the game: FC Pune City head coach David PlattWe have to have more attitude in our home games, need to be more offensive. Our coach has been demanding this from us, to improve and get a win at home: Delhi Dynamos FC defensive midfielder ChiacoSquads:Delhi Dynamos FC: Antonio Doblas Santana, Sanjiban Ghosh, Ishan Debnath, Thokchom Naoba Singh, Prabir Das, Roberto Carlos [marquee], John Arne Riise, Robert Lalthlamuana, Anas Edathodika, Anwar Ali, Anderson Sebastiao Cardoso [Chicao], Shylo Malsawmtluanga [Mama]. Sehnaj Singh, Souvik Chakrabarti, Hans Mulder, Serginho Greene, Zodingliana Tochhawng, Gunasekhar Vignesh, Florent Malouda, Gustavo dos Santos Marmentini, Seminlen Doungel, Robin Singh, Richard Gadze, Adil Nabi, Vinicius Ferreira de SouzaFC Pune City: Kalu Uche, Adrian Mutu (Marquee Player), Yendrick Ruiz, Wesley Verhoek, Tuncay Sanli, Didier Zokora, James Bailey, Jackichand Singh, Fanai Lalrempuia, Sushanth Mathew, Manish Maithani, Bikash Jairu, Israil Gurung, Eugeneson Lyngdoh, Lenny Rodrigues, Diego Colotto, Roger Johnson, Nicky Shorey, Govin Singh, Gourmangi Singh, Gurjinder Kumar, Pritam Kotal, Dharmaraj Ravanan, Steve Simonsen, Lalit Thapa, Arindam Bhattacharya
