Dempo face Salgaocar, Bengaluru take on Sporting in Fed Cup double header

Margao (Goa), Jan 8: Dempo SC take on Salgaocar FC while Bengaluru FC face Sporting club de Goa in a Federation Cup football semi-final double-header Friday.

Dempo has been so far the team to watch out for in the tournament, going past opponents with ease, but they would not expect a cake-walk when they face off against an equally in form Salgaocar.

The local sides clash in a rematch of the 2012 Federation Cup semi-final when Dempo emerged victorious.

The five-time I-league champions would be hope for a repeat performance, owing to their superb form in the tournament’s group matches, conceding the least number of goals in an unbeaten run so far.

But Dempo's Australian coach Arthur Papas has a tough task in hand of stopping a team that are on a high after posting impressive wins against Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan and Pune FC.

In the second last-four match, I-League champions Bengaluru FC will look to build on their winning habit when they come up against local side Sporting Clube de Goa in another rematch of last year.

Sporting enterprising forwards Victorino Fernandez and Trinidadian Anthony Wolfeas come up against the formidable central defensive pairing of Englishman John Johnson and Kenyan Curtis Osano in what would be a key sub-clash of the contest.

Sporting would be on a high after their come-from-behind 4-3 win against East Bengal. And with Victorino in inspired form after the hat-trick against the Kolkata side, they would certainly fancy their chances against Bengaluru.