New Delhi, Jan 31 (Reporter) Punjab FC will host Bengaluru FC at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium here in the Indian Super League (ISL) match on Saturday. The Panagiotis Dilmperis-coached team will have their task cut out in improving their home form, since they have not won any of the last four encounters at this venue. Bengaluru FC had beaten Punjab FC by a slender margin of 1-0 in the reverse fixture. However, the latter are one of the four active teams that the Blues are yet to round off a league double over, alongside Hyderabad FC, Mohammedan SC, and Mohun Bagan Super Giant. Both these teams are struggling for form, with Bengaluru FC having drawn once and losing twice in their last three away encounters. Their most recent match on the road saw them fall to a 0-1 loss to the Mohun Bagan Super Giant in Kolkata. They will want to find their groove upfront, as the last time they had not netted in consecutive away encounters was in 2022. Bengaluru FC have faced losses in four out of their last five encounters. They are placed fifth in the points table with 28 points from 18 matches, on the back of eight wins and four draws. Punjab FC follow in the ninth position with 20 points from 16 games due to six victories and two draws. Punjab FC trail the sixth-placed Mumbai City FC (27) by seven points, having played a game fewer than the Islanders (17). They have a reasonable period in hand to reignite their charge for the top-six, whereas the Blues will want to push upwards as the second-placed FC Goa have five more points (33) than them, having played a game less (17). Punjab FC are the only team yet to find the back of the net through a headed goal in the current ISL season. On the other hand, they have conceded the second-most goals this way (7). Coach Dilmperis will have to work to ensure that his side’s aerial prowess on both ends is fine-tuned to yield them the required returns. Punjab FC have averaged only 16.2 touches in the opposition box per game, the second-lowest tally in the league, ahead of only Hyderabad FC (14.9). They have netted the fifth-least goals (23) in season, with Luka Majcen (6) and Ezequiel Vidal (5) top-scoring for them. Bengaluru FC have recorded 147 sequences of 10+ open-play passes this season, the second-most behind Mohun Bagan Super Giant (151). Their highest-ever season tally is 152 (2017-18). This shows that they have embraced and implemented Gerard Zaragoza’s playing philosophy to the full tilt this season. Bengaluru FC have scored six headed goals this season, with only Mohun Bagan Super Giant (8) bettering them in this manner. The Blues have made good use of their players in the flanks by having them deliver consistent crosses for their target men in the box. Given Punjab FC’s drawback in defending aerial attacks, the Blues might just make the most of their proficiency in this regard. The two teams have played thrice in the ISL. Bengaluru FC and Punjab FC have won once each, whereas one game has ended in a draw. Punjab FC head coach Panagiotis Dilmperis simplified the tasks for his team for the coming match. “We will try to address as many issues as they try to create for us. Hopefully, we manage to keep a clean sheet and score more than them,” he said. Bengaluru FC head coach Gerard Zaragoza admitted that his team is preparing well for the coming match. “We have six games remaining in the league now, but the most important part is the next game against Punjab FC. The team has been training well,” he said. Ryan Williams (5 goals, 4 assists) is one goal contribution away from becoming the sixth Bengaluru FC player to record 10+ goal contributions in a single ISL season. Sunil Chhetri (12) has already achieved this feat for the Blues in 2024-25. He has created 23 goal-scoring chances and notched 27.78% goal conversion rate. Asmir Suljic has provided an assist in each of Punjab FC’s last two ISL games and now has the chance to become the first Punjab FC player to set up a goal in three consecutive league games. Suljic has delivered 16 key passes, making 24 passes per game at 82% accuracy, and notching a 25% goal conversion rate. Bengaluru FC’s Rahul Bheke (118) is among four outfield players with 100+ successful long passes this season. His accuracy rate (67.1%) is the third-highest among outfielders attempting at least 100 long passes, behind Mourtada Fall (69.6%) and Mehtab Singh (67.4%). Punjab FC’s Nikhil Prabhu has made 45 interceptions this season, the most by any player in ISL 2024-25. He is five away from becoming the fourth Indian player to record 50+ interceptions in a single ISL season. Prabhu has also made 67 recoveries in addition to emerging victorious in 80 duels...////...