Among the Goa players, Hrithik Tiwari, Salman Faris, Lalremruata HP, Jovial Dias and Phrangki Buam will be the key players to watch out for. Goalkeeper Hrithik has been in fine form of late, making several fine saves including a save from a penalty in the last game.
Everyone barring four first-team players away on Durand Cup duties joined the contingent which began practice here at the Salvador do Mundo Panchayat Football Ground on Friday.
FC Goa joins Mohammedan Sporting and Bengaluru FC with three points in Group A, even though the latter have a game in hand. Jamshedpur FC is the other team in the Group. The top two teams from each Group qualify for the quarter-finals.
The Kerala Blasters and Sudeva FC game at the Indira Gandhi Athletic stadium which follows the FC Goa-Indian Air Force game on Matchday 4, will see both teams making a first appearance in this year's tournament while it will be their second overall appearance at the Durand Cup.
The Gaurs took the lead against Mohammedan SC in their opening match on Tuesday before a second-half blitzkrieg helped the Black Panthers take home the three points.
Muhammed Nemil opened the scoring with a beautiful outside-the-box finish (34') but three second-half goals from Pritam Singh (49'), Faslu Rahman (84'), and a stoppage-time goal from skipper Marcus Joseph (90+3') were enough to seal the deal for the night.
The Gaurs arrived at Kolkata for the tournament on Sunday ahead of the club's third campaign at the Durand Cup, having previously played in the 2019 and 2021 editions. So far, the club have remained unbeaten in the tournament and would look to extend their solid run.
The Goa side is brimming with young talent and Mohammedan Sporting are at full throttle as the first official game of India's newest footballing season gets underway amidst a build-up which saw a Trophy tour of five cities including Guwahati and Imphal, the two first-time host cities.