Author: KBFC-Media

TEAM NEWS

Kerala Blasters will take on Northeast United FC in the 8th home game at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi. With Blasters returning to the home after 26 days gap, will be aiming to grab all 3 points against the Highlanders in front of the 12th man.

KBFC is currently going through a rough patch following back-to-back defeats. In the very last game, they encountered Goa and lost 3-1, even after putting up an appreciable fight. The Blasters are now in 5th position with 25 points from 14 games and are still in the fight for the play-off spot.

Northeast United FC is not having their best season so far. They’re bottom placed with only one win and a draw from 15 games. But with a new coach at the helm and some variations in their squad, they’re giving a fight to the opponents.

HEAD TO HEAD

KBFC holds an upper hand against NEUFC winning 7 out of 17 games and have scored 19 goals. Northeast United have won 4 times and have scored 12 goals.

In the reverse fixture which happened back in November, Blasters dominated the Highlanders and won the game by a 3 goal margin. Diamantakos scored his first in yellow followed by a late brace from Sahal who came in as a substitute, sealed the game for us.

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT

Dimitrios Diamantakos scored his seventh league goal against FC Goa from a free-kick. Adrian Luna’s set piece from the left flank came down to the box for Dimi, who nodded it to the net. He created multiple chances before and after that, but failed to convert them.

Adrian Luna had a good outing against FC Goa. He made his presence felt everywhere in the pitch and was pivotal during our attacks. The Uruguayan also registered his 11th assist for the club with an inch-perfect free-kick to find Diamantakos in the box.

WHERE TO WATCH

The live streaming of the match will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports Network and Asianet Plus. The updates will be made available through Club’s official twitter account also.

TEAM NEWS

Kerala Blasters will face FC Goa in their fourteenth game of the season at Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, Fatorda, Goa. Blasters who are in the third position of the table will be looking to strengthen their point tally, whereas Goa who are in the sixth position will be looking forward to continuing in the race for playoffs.

KBFC lost their last game against Mumbai City FC 4-0 which ended the 8-match unbeaten streak of the Blasters, but Ivan’s boys will be eyeing to bounce back against the Gaurs.

When these two sides met earlier in this season, it was Blasters who emerged as the best out of two. KBFC won the game 3-1 at Kochi. Luna, Diamantakos and Kaliuzhnyi found the nets for the home side and Noah Sadaoui nodded one back for the visitors.

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT

Adrian Luna was a workaholic in the field for Blasters against Mumbai. He was orchestrating almost every attack of KBFC but failed to find the nets against the Islanders. He covered a distance of about 12 kilometers and proved to be a vital member of the team.

Hormipam Ruivah was another standout player against Mumbai City FC. Even though the team conceded few goals, the young defender tried his best to coordinate the back line under unfamiliar conditions.

QUICK RUNDOWN

Both teams have faced each other 17 times and the Gaurs holds an upper hand above Blasters with 9 wins and 41 goals scored. Blasters have won 4, including the reverse fixture and have scored 26 goals. 4 matches ended in stalemate.

WHERE TO WATCH

The game between FC Goa and Kerala Blasters will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be made available through the club’s twitter account as well.

TEAM NEWS

Kerala Blasters will square off against Mumbai City FC in a mouth watering clash at the Mumbai Football Arena. Mumbai are yet to lose a game in this iteration of Hero ISL, whereas KBFC is on a 8 match unbeaten run. Both the teams will be looking forward to extending their ongoing unbeaten run.

Mumbai is currently placed at the second position with 30 points. They have won 9 out of their 12 games and have drawn 3. The Blasters are placed a step below, on third with 25 points from 12 games, winning 8 of them. MCFC won their last game against Odisha FC by 4-2 and KBFC beat Jamshedpur by 3-1. Giannou, Diamantakos and Luna scored for Kerala.Interestingly, KBFC’s last defeat was in the reverse fixture of this match, at Kochi, losing 2-0 to the Islanders. Mehtab Singh and Jorge Pereyra Diaz scored for them at Kaloor. A valiant second half performance from the boys wasn’t enough to get points out of that game.

HEAD TO HEAD

Both the teams have met each other 17 times in ISL. Mumbai have won 7 out of them and the men in yellow managed to beat them 4 times. The other 6 games ended up in draws.

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT

Dimitrios Diamantakos, who had a brief pause to his goalscoring run returned to his duty with the spot-kick against Jamshedpur FC. The Greek forward also assisted his compatriot Giannou, who scored the opening goal against the Red Miners.Apostolos Giannou, who started the game against JFC, scored the opener against them with a cheeky back-heel from Diamantakos’s assist.Adrian Luna had a very good outing against JFC. Apart from scoring the third goal, he made his presence felt everywhere on the pitch. He was the one who started the forward move to that landmark 200th goal and he himself finished it. Luna also earned the Hero of the Match award for the relentless efforts he put for the team.

WHERE TO WATCH?

The live streaming of the match will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports Network and Asianet Plus. The updates will be made available through Club’s official twitter account also.

When JAMSHEDPUR FC opted to go for a 3-4-1-2 formation. Coach Ivan Vukomanović opted to field Blasters unit under 4-4-2 formation with Adrián Luna moving to the midfield replacing Ivan Kalyuzhnyi (who lost the match due to a suspension) and Apostolos Giannou joining Dimitrios Diamantakos in the frontline.

Both teams conveyed their message to the opponents within the opening minutes itself. With Sahal Abdul Samad rushing into Jamshedpur penalty box in the 2nd minute and Chima Chukwu sprinting into Blasters penalty box to connect a long ball within seconds, both teams were eager to score first and induce pressure on opponents. Sahal Abdul Samad was back to knock on the goal line in the 4th minute only to be blocked by Pratik Chaudhari. 5th minute showed how dangerous Blasters attacking unit of can be. Adrián Luna was there to connect a pass from Dimitrios Diamantakos inside the Jamshedpur penalty box but the shot on target was blocked for the visitors by Muhammad Uvais. Ishan Pandita knocked on the Blasters goal line in the 8th minute only to find that Blasters custodian Prabhsukhan Singh Gill was vigilant enough to collect the ball with ease. On the other end, Apostolos Giannou made a header attempt and was denied by the Jamshedpur defence. ‘The red mariners’ were quick to launch a counterattack and Prabhsukhan Singh Gill was there to deny a shot on target from Chima Chukwu.

9th minute into the game, the new attacking duo made the score card click in favour for Blasters. A pass from Dimitrios Diamantakos and a back heal tap-in from Apostolos Giannou to the goal got the lead for Blasters. Blasters were back knocking on the goal line in the 13th minute with Dimitrios Diamantakos flicking the ball to Apostolos Giannou who tried a header attempt and unlucky to miss the target. Another run from Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 16th minute was denied by offside flag. A quick attack from Ishan Pandita got the Blasters defence and Prabhsukhan Singh Gill off guard on the 17th minute and Chima Chukwu did the job for ‘The MEN of steel’. Equalizer from the visitors.

A shot on target from Rahul KP on the 22nd minute was collected by Jamshedpur custodian Vishal Yadav. But that did not stop him from trying another shot in the 27th minute to miss the target narrowly. Blasters were back testing the Jamshedpur defence in the same minute through Apostolos Giannou delivering a cross which was collected by Vishal Yadav to avoid danger. Handball from Boris Singh inside the penalty in the 30th minute made the referee point the fingers at the penalty spot in favour of Blasters. With Vishal Yadav diving in the wrong direction, Dimitrios Diamantakos made no mistake to extend the lead for Blasters. Vishal Yadav was back to deny an attempt from Sahal Abdul Samad on the 33rd minute. When Eli Sabiá came in to deny another shot on target on 33rd minute, Apostolos Giannou marginally missed the target on a pass from Sahal Abdul Samad inside the penalty box. With Prabhsukhan Singh Gill clearing a shot on target from Ishan Pandita and Chima Chukwu missing the target on the 35th minute got the visitors close to scoring. Another attempt from Ishan Pandita in the 40th minute was cleared by Sandeep Singh. On the other side, Sahal Abdul Samad was unlucky to miss the target on 44th minute. With Blasters leading the score board, both teams went for the half time break.

Blasters went for the substitution first by bringing in Nishu Kumar for Jessel Carneiro at the starting of second half. Soon after the match restarted, Ishan Pandita was there to knock on Blasters goal line on the 46th minute only to miss the target . Sahal Abdul Samad was successful to break the defence line and receive a through ball from Adrián Luna and make a run to deliver a pass into the penalty box on the 47th minute. But Jamshedpur defence was quick to regroup and clear the danger. A defence breaking run from Chima Chukwu on the 53rd minute was brought down by an interception from Prabhsukhan Singh Gill outside the penalty box. Sandeep Singh got blasters close to scoring on the 60th minute only to be denied by Vishal Yadav. Sandeep Singh was back knocking on the goal line with a header within seconds followed by a brilliant clearance on the other end of the pitch to deny Ishan Pandita getting anywhere near the goal-line.

A string of perfectly calculated and executed one-touch passes combined with a brilliant finish from Adrián Luna in the 65th minute will remain as one of the best team goals from ‘MEN in Yellow’. It all started from Adrián Luna and Jeakson Singh closing down on Rafael Crivellaro and Adrián Luna clearing the ball. Luna passed the ball to Hormipam Ruivah and ball was passed back to Luna followed by a 1-2 pass between Luna and Hormipam, Luna move 3 steps forward with the ball and passes the ball to Sahal to start a symphony of one touch passes. Sahal gives the ball back to Luna, Luna to Diamantakos, Diamantakos to Giannou through a back heal, Giannou gives the ball back to Luna with another back heal and the ball was guided to the target by the ‘Magician’ himself. With the two goals lead and time slipping away from the clock Jamshedpur FC tried for final fightback. With bringing in Víctor Mongil and Nihal Sudheesh in the 72nd minute replacing Apostolos Giannou and Sahal Abdul Samad Blasters ensured that the energy level on field remained high. Bryce Miranda replacing Rahul KP on the 79th minute and Bidyashagar Singh replacing Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 90th minute ensured that the visitors defence unit was kept occupied till the final whistle. With the final whistle, Blasters walked out of the pitch unbeaten from the 8th consecutive match and the three points.

TEAM NEWS

Kerala Blasters will take on Jamshedpur FC in their first match of the year 2023 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi. Both the teams will be eyeing for a win to mark the start of a new year.

In the preceding game against Odisha FC, KBFC scored a late goal through Sandeep Singh to clinch all three points and ended the year on a high note. They will be looking forward to continuing the same momentum against JFC. Jamshedpur FC held FC Goa to a 2-2 draw in their last game and will be aiming to go a level up to grab a win against the men in yellow.

In their last meeting, KBFC won the game for 1-0 courtesy to Diamantakos’ close-range shot from a Luna freekick. KBFC is currently at 4th position in the table with 22 points from 11 games and Men of Steel is in the 10th position with only one win in their 11 games.

HEAD TO HEAD

Both teams have faced each other 13 times including the 2021-22 semifinals. Both teams have won 3 times and 7 games ended in stalemate.

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCHOUT

Sandeep Singh scored the only goal against Odisha FC on boxing day to help the men in yellow to win their last game of the year 2022. Apart from that goal, he also did a splendid job at the defense-line and earned the well deserved Hero of the Match award.

Nihal Sudheesh, the local lad who came in as a substitute in the second half, set the fire on the right flank within a few minutes. He almost got his first ISL goal on a couple of occasions, but narrowly missed it. He was crucial in the second half performance of KBFC against the Juggernauts.

Bryce Miranda, yet another player who came in the second half against Odisha FC registered his first ever Hero ISL assist to his name. His crosses always created threat in the Odisha box and at one instance it caught their custodian and the back line off guard and Sandeep acted at time to nod it home.

WHERE TO WATCH?

The live streaming will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be provided through the club’s twitter account also.

When ODISHA FC opted to go for a 4-3-3 formation. Coach Ivan Vukomanović opted to field Blasters unit under 4-4-2 formation with Jessel Carneiro back in the starting line-up with Captain’s arm band.

When both teams gave out everything on field till the final whistle for the 3 points, fans witnessed a close fought battle. Within first few seconds to the game, It was evident that the visitors have done enough research on Ivan Vukomanović’s men. Odisha Fc played a composed and high pressing game of football which did not allow Blasters to play the usual attacking game. Odisha Fc were the first one to knock on the goal line through Raynier Fernandes. A powerful shot from the jersey number 10 of Odisha Fc hitting the woodwork looked dangerous for the Blasters.

RECOVER and RESTRUCTURE is what this Blasters unit is known for. And they did it again. Blasters got back to the game in no time. 8th minute to the game Ivan Kalyuzhnyi was successful to give a through ball to the Odisha FC penalty box. However, Amrinder Singh was quick to collect the ball before Dimitrios Diamantakos could get a contact on the ball. 10th minute saw the ball again getting to the Odisha FC penalty box. This time Ivan Kalyuzhnyi himself took the ball to the attacking front only to be denied by the offside flag before Dimitrios Diamantakos could attempt a shot on target. A cross from Captain Jessel Carneiro himself into the penalty box in the 13th minute was cleared by Osama Malik. With Odisha FC repeatedly attacking on the Blasters goal line, Jessel Carneiro was inside the visitor’s penalty box again in the 18th minute only to miss the target marginally. On the other end, Víctor Rodríguez’s shot on target was comfortably collected by Prabhsukhan Singh Gill in 44thminute to deny visitors from scoring. Though attacks swing in both directions, respective defence units ensured that goals stayed away till both teams walked out for half time.

Second half saw Blasters taking away the game from the visitors. Blasters started identifying the open space between Odisha FC defence and was able to get to the opponent penalty box within first minute to the second half. Sahal Abdul Samad got to the Odisha FC penalty box again on the 50th minute only to be cleared by the defence at the last moment. A cross from Jessel Carneiro to the goal line in the 56th minute was collected by Odish Fc custodian Amrinder Singh before any Blasters players could reach the ball. Once Blasters got the game back from visitors, attacks became consistent. A pass from Adrian Luna to Dimitrios Diamantakos in the 57th minute almost got Blasters on the score board. A timely clearance from Carlos Delgado cleared danger for the visitors. Another attempt from Blasters on 66th minute looked promising but could not be converted to a goal. 67th minute saw Sahal Abdul Samad reaching close to scoring for blasters and narrowly missing the target. Nihal Sudheesh and Apostolos Giannou were brough in by Blasters instead of Rahul KP and Dimitrios Diamantakos on the 70th minute. Nihal Sudheesh came close to the scoring his debut ISL goal on the 71st minute. But was unfortunate not to get a contact on ball inside the penalty box. Apostolos Giannou made a successful run in to the penalty box in 72nd minute was cleared by Osama Malik. However, Captain Jessel Carneiro was there to test Amrinder Singh and Sahal Abdul Samad with an acrobatic attempt on the rebound. Another attempt from Apostolos Giannou in 74th minute could not reach Sahal Abdul Samad who was inches away from the score line. Bryce Miranda replaced Sahal Abdul Samad for Blasters in 83rd minute and that eventually resulted in the awaited goal for Blasters. Amrinder Singh stepped out to clear a cross from Bryce Miranda to the penalty box and Sandeep Singh there to guide the ball to the target through a header in the 86th minute. With the late minute goal, ‘MEN IN YELLOW’ made sure to walk out of the field with a win and another clean sheet.

Kerala Blasters will take on Odisha FC in the Boxing Day fixture of Hero ISL season 9 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Kochi. This game will mark the start of the second phase of the season for both teams as they have finished the first 10 matches beforehand.

KBFC had a 1-1 draw against Chennaiyin FC in their last game which halted the 5-match winning streak of the Blasters. With 19 points from 10 matches KBFC is sitting at 5th position whereas Odisha is in 6th position with the same number of points but an inferior goal difference. They played against ATK Mohun Bagan FC in their last match, which also ended in a stalemate.

When the last time these two sides met, at Odisha’s home, it turned out to be a tough night for men in yellow. They went down to the Kalinga warriors for 2 goals to 1, even though it was KBFC who took the lead in the first half, Pedro Martin’s late goal offered them the victory at Bhubaneswar. Harmanjot Khabra was on the score sheet that day.

QUICK RUN DOWN

Kerala have a slight edge over Odisha as they have won 7 out of 19 matches and Odisha have won 5, including the latest meeting which happened earlier in this season. Points were shared on 7 occasions.

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT

Sahal Abdul Samad who scored a brace earlier this season against NEUFC made it into the scoresheet as he scored a delicate goal against Chennaiyin FC last week. He now has 10 ISL goals to his name.Ivan Kaliuzhnyi was pivotal in the middle of the park. He also provided the assist to Sahal’s goal, which showed his quality on the ball and his vision of the game.Marko Leskovic had a good outing against Chennaiyin last Monday. He was strong and steady in the defense and denied Marina Machans many times.

WHERE TO WATCH

The live streaming will be available on Disney+ Hotstar, Jio TV, Star Sports network and Asianet Plus. Live updates will be provided through club’s twitter account as well.